General David Petraus, the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, said in a statement on Monday that a Florida church’s plan to burn Qurans on Sept. 11 could be detrimental to American troops overseas, and also negatively impact other innocents in Muslim dominated countries.
"It could endanger troops and it could endanger the overall effort in Afghanistan,” said Gen. Petraeus. “It is precisely the kind of action the Taliban uses and could cause significant problems. Not just here, but everywhere in the world we are engaged with the Islamic community."
As previously reported in 'So What?', an inter-denominational Florida church called the Dove World Outreach Center plans to burn copies of the Quran on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Petraeus’ plea has been joined to numerous other Christian voices from all over the world urging the church not to go through with their plans. This includes the largest evangelical body in the U.S., the National Association of Evangelicals as well as the National Council of churches.
Protests around the Muslim world from Afghanistan to Indonesia have already been held in anticipation of this event. Protestors in Afghanistan burnt American flags and chanted “Death to America” and “Long live Islam.” They also burnt an effigy of the Dove World Outreach Center’s pastor, Terry Jones.
Open Doors, a ministry that works with persecuted churches, warned that the Quran burning could have severe repercussions for Christians living in Muslim dominated countries.
“The burning of Qurans will only confirm what many Muslims believe – that Christians hate Muslims,” said Dr. Carl Moeller, president/CEO of Open Doors USA. “That is exactly the opposite message we as Christians want to send. We want to reach out in love to them.”
In countries such as Pakistan, there is already a history of Christians being falsely accused of desecrating the Quran by Muslims and sent to jail, because under that country’s controversial blasphemy law, a Muslim can accuse a Christian of insulting Islam’s holy book without evidence.
Abdul Shakoor, an 18-year-old high school student who said he joined the Kabul protest after hearing neighbors talk about the Quran burning, commented, “We know this is not just the decision of a church. It is the decision of the president and the entire United States," as reported by The Associated Press.