【每日快报】OBAMA: AMERICA WILL NEVER BE AT WAR WITH ISLAM

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OBAMA: AMERICA WILL NEVER BE AT WAR WITH ISLAM
http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/105513/Obama-America-will-never-be-at-war-with-Islam-

Friday June 5,2009 By Jane Wharton


EPIC SPEECH: Obama spoke of unity

BARACK Obama sought to forge a “new beginning” with the Muslim world in a landmark speech yesterday.

The US President, addressing the world’s 1.5billion Muslims, acknowledged a string of grievances and pledged to rebuild bridges based on “mutual interest and mutual respect”.

Stressing his own links with Islam, the President did not deviate from his hard line on terror.

But he said Islam was an important part of promoting peace and vowed: “America is not – and never will be – at war with Islam.”

The speech, made in front of an invited audience at Cairo University, was interrupted by shouts of “we love you”.

In an address that included quotes from Islam’s holy book, Obama said: “We meet at a time of tension between the United States and Muslims around the world – tension rooted in historical forces that go beyond any current policy debate.”

Extremists had exploited these tensions and the 9/11 terror attacks had bred fear among some Americans, he said.

Obama vowed: “I come here to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world, based upon mutual interest and respect.

“America and Islam are not exclusive and need not be in competition. This cycle of suspicion and discord must end.”

The President said one speech could not eradicate years of mistrust but he said “the interests we share as human beings are far more powerful than the forces that drive us apart”.

He said this conviction was based on his childhood as a Christian boy who spent time in Indonesia and whose Kenyan father’s family included generations of Muslims.

The President also called on both sides to overcome negative perceptions, saying: “Just as Muslims do not fit a crude stereotype, America is not the crude stereotype of a self-interested empire.” Obama said the US bond with Israel was unbreakable but described the Palestinians’ plight as “intolerable”. He affirmed his commitment to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying Palestinians had to acknowledge Israel’s right to exist and Israel should stop building settlements in the West Bank. Obama also touched on women’s rights, stressing that women should have equal rights, an education and the choice about how they lived.

He added that the US had no interest in a permanent base in either Iraq or Afghanistan and would happily leave were it not for extremist groups threatening stability in the region.

The Israeli government, in an initial reaction to the speech, said it would lead to a “new era of reconciliation” with the Arab World.

However, terror chief Osama bin Laden warned Muslims against an alliance with Christians and Jews, saying it would annul their faith.

外间幻想

谁也不能保证下一届美国总统会继续奥巴马的政策。