Muslim Terrorist Group CAIR Furious over Tancredo 'Bomb Mecca' Plan

http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2007/8/6/215823.shtml?s=ic

CAIR Furious over Tancredo 'Bomb Mecca' Plan

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today welcomed remarks by

several Republican

presidential candidates repudiating threats made by fellow White House

hopeful Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO) to attack Islamic holy sites.

The Washington-based Islamic civil rights and advocacy group also called on

Tancredo to retract and apologize for remarks he made last week advocating

threats to bomb the holy cities of Mecca and Medina as part of his proposed

anti-terror policy.

In a statement issued today, CAIR said: "The Republican candidates and the

Department of State are correct in rejecting threatened attacks on Islamic

holy sites as a deterrent to terrorists.

"Representative Tancredo's extreme and counterproductive proposal to

threaten Mecca and Medina fails any reasonable test for strategic viability.

It only serves to further damage our nation's interests and image in the

Muslim world and will inevitably be used as rhetorical fodder by extremists.

"America's relationship with Islam and Muslims worldwide will be a central

issue for the administration of our next president, whoever that may be.

"We call on Representative Tancredo to retract his inflammatory statements

and to apologize for fanning the flames of international mistrust and

hostility. We also urge every other presidential candidate to state how her

or his leadership would win back the international support, particularly in

the Islamic world, that America has lost in recent years."

During a Republican presidential debate in Iowa over the weekend, former

Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson said, "I sincerely believe that bombing

religious artifacts and religious holy sites would do nothing but unify 1

billion Muslims against us."

After the debate, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee said the idea is

"appalling." Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) also said, "I wouldn't follow that."

Earlier in the week, Tom Casey, a deputy spokesperson for the State

Department, said: "It is absolutely outrageous and reprehensible for anyone

to suggest attacks on holy sites, whether they are Muslim, Christian, Jewish

or those of any other religion." Casey called Tancredo's proposal

"absolutely crazy."

CAIR, America's largest Islamic civil liberties group, has 33 offices and

chapters nationwide and in Canada.