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"Non-Muslim
organizations are preparing to enter Iraq to start their activity
under the cover of providing humanitarian aid," al-Turki
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RIYADH,
April 15 (Islamonline.net & News Agencies) - The Muslim World League
(MWL) warned Tuesday, April 15, that some "non-Muslim
organizations" might exploit the humanitarian crisis in Iraq.
"Non-Muslim
organizations are preparing to enter Iraq to start their activity under
the cover of providing humanitarian aid, as they normally exploit
crises, wars and tragedies," MWL Secretary General Abdullah bin
Abdulmohsen Al-Turki cautioned.
He
warned of "the dangers this poses to Muslims in Iraq" and
called on the Iraqi people to adhere to Islam and to stay away from
"ethnic and sectarian feuds".
Agence
France-Presse (AFP), which carried the news, described "non-Muslim
organizations" as a term used for Christian missionaries.
The
MWL chief also appealed to Arab and Muslim countries and organizations
to provide all possible aid to the Iraqi people and help them safeguard
their territorial unity and cultural and Islamic heritage, reported
Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Iraq
is an overwhelmingly Muslim country, with members of the Shiite sect
making up around 60 percent of the population of about 24 million.
It
is also home to a Christian minority numbering around 250,000.
In
a recent interview with the religiously-oriented web site Beliefnet,
Franklin Graham, son of the world-famous evangelist Billy Graham and one
of the most outspoken U.S. critics of Islam, said he has relief workers
"poised and ready"
to go into Iraq to provide for the populations post-war physical and
spiritual needs.
Graham,
who has publicly called Islam a "wicked" religion, said his
Samaritans Purse relief agency is in daily contact with U.S. government
agencies in Amman, Jordan, about its plans.
The
Southern Baptist Convention, the U.S. largest Protestant denomination,
also reported that workers were on the Iraqi-Jordanian borders ready to
go in as soon as it is safe.
Both
Graham and the Southern Baptist Convention have been at the heart of
controversial evangelical denunciations of Islam.
The
Southern Baptist Convention and Graham’s Samaritan's Purse claimed
their priority will be to provide food, shelter and other needs to
war-ravaged Iraqis, but asserting that when convenient they will also
share their Christian faith with Iraqis.
Graham
told Beliefnet.com Wednesday, March 25, in a telephone interview from
Samaritan’s Purse headquarters in Boone, N.C., “We realize we’re
in an Arab country and we just can’t go out and preach.”
"I
believe as we work, God will always give us opportunities to tell others
about his Son….We are there to reach out to love them and to save
them, and as a Christian I do this in the name of Jesus Christ. "
In
his interview with Beliefnet.com, he renewed allegations that "the
Qur'an teaches violence, not peace..."
Muslims
were outraged that Graham would be allowed to help with Iraq’s
humanitarian effort.
"Franklin
Graham obviously thinks it is a war against Islam, "said Ibrahim
Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
"This
is a guy who gave the invocation at President Bush’s inauguration and
believes Islam is a wicked faith. And he's going to go into Iraq in the
wake of an invading army and convert people to Christianity? Nothing
good is coming of that.”
