Egyptian preacher urges reconciliation after cartoon crisis

A popular Egyptian preacher today called for reconciliation between the West and the Muslim world at the start of a Danish conference aimed at fostering religious dialogue in the wake of the uproar caused by the prophet cartoons.

“We feel there are forces of extremism which are aiming to light fires and transform Denmark from a peaceful country to a country which will suffer from conflicts,” Amr Khaled said.

He said moderate forces on both sides must come together to build bridges and stop the “clash and conflict” that erupted after the cartoons were published in Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, and reprinted by other Western media.

“We have come to say that Islam is a giving religion, and Denmark can benefit from this religion,” he said at the start of the one-day conference of Muslim and Christian religious leaders and scholars in Copenhagen.

He suggested a boycott against Danish goods in Arab countries would stop if Danish people and its government showed a gesture of goodwill toward the Muslim world.