The leader of a Florida church that espouses anti-Islam philosophy said yesterday that he was determined to burn copies of the Koran on Saturday despite pressure from the White House, religious leaders, and others to call it off.
Pastor Terry Jones said at a news conference that he has received a lot of encouragement, with supporters mailing copies of the Islamic holy text to his Gainesville church of about 50 followers. He proclaimed in July that he would stage “International Burn a Koran Day’’ to mark the ninth anniversary of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
“As of right now, we are not convinced that backing down is the right thing,’’ Jones said.
Jones said he has received more than 100 death threats and has started carrying a .40-caliber pistol since announcing his plan to burn the book Muslims consider the word of God. Jones, 58, was flanked by an armed escort yesterday.
General David Petraeus, the top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, took the rare step of a military leader taking a position on a domestic matter when he warned in an e-mail to the Associated Press that “images of the burning of a Koran would undoubtedly be used by extremists in Afghanistan — and around the world — to inflame public opinion and incite violence.’’
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