BURNING ISSUE: Obama appeals for tolerance on 9/11 anniversary

US PRESIDENT Barack Obama last night appealed for religious tolerance amid the Koran-burning controversy.

Reminding Americans that the “overwhelming majority” of Muslims around the world are peace-loving people, he described Pastor Terry Jones’ plans to burn copies of the Koran as a “recruitment bonanza for al-Qaida”.

Obama said it was imperative that people in the US distinguish between their real enemies and those who only still have the potential to become enemies because of continued vilification of Islam in the United States. At a time when polls suggest that a substantial number of Americans erroneously believe that Obama is Muslim, the president cited his own Christian faith at one point.