A leading Australian Islamic body will send letters to 200 Muslim clerics and community leaders today calling on them to condemn terrorist bombings and to acknowledge that some Muslims have been involved in attacks such as September 11.
The chief executive of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, Amjad Mehboob, said the decision to send the letters had come after a “very disturbing and very distressing” day when talkback radio callers in Sydney launched what he called a “free-for-all” attacking Muslims.
“It was a pretty bad day from our perspective,” Mr Mehboob told the Herald. “There was talk about getting all the Muslims packing from this country and closing down mosques.”
As the State Government considers bag searches and placing bomb-sniffer dogs on trains, the Premier, Bob Carr, raised the stakes in the debate over Muslim fundamentalism yesterday, saying people should be denied visas if they refuse to integrate.
Asked on ABC Radio about the US imam Sheik Khalid Yasin, who has espoused the strict imposition of sharia law, Mr Carr said: “A personal opinion: I don’t think they should be let in