TURKISH IMAM'S WANT POPE ARRESTED DURING HIS VISIT

Angry Turk workers urge Pope's arrest during visit

ANKARA (Reuters) - Employees of the state body that organizes Muslim worship in Turkey asked the authorities on Tuesday to open legal proceedings against Pope Benedict and to arrest him when he visits the country in November.

Muslims worldwide have been angered by remarks the Pope made in a lecture last week that they said portrayed Islam as a religion tainted by violence and irrationality.

Benedict has said he is deeply sorry Muslims have been offended by his use of a medieval quotation on Islam and holy war, but has stopped short of retracting his comments.

Employees of Ankara's Directorate General for Religious Affairs, or Diyanet, presented a petition to the Justice Ministry asking it to launch a probe into the Pope's remarks and to detain him when he arrives, the Anatolian news agency said.

They said the Pontiff had violated Turkish laws upholding freedom of belief and thought by "insulting" Islam and the Prophet Mohammad.

The protesters held banners that read "Either apologize or don't come".

It is not uncommon for individuals or organizations in Turkey to seek legal action against world leaders whose actions they disapprove of. They have never succeeded.

Benedict is due to pay an official visit to Turkey on November 28-30, his first to a Muslim country since he became Pope.

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As WesternResistance has disclosed:

"Notice the deceptive headline; "Turk workers urge pope's arrest". The workers in question work for the Diyanet, the Presidency of Religious Affairs, which oversees Islamic education and worship in Mosques. In other words; most of the "workers" are Imams..."


Pertinent Links:

1) Angry Turk workers urge Pope's arrest during visit

2) Turkey: Muslim Clerics Ask Government to Arrest Pope