Pastor Terry Jones has cancelled his plans to burn the Qur'an on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Photograph: Chip Litherland/Polaris/Eyevine
Terry Jones, the Florida pastor who planned to stage a Qur'an-burning protest on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks, has decided to cancel the event.
Jones, who heads the Dove World Outreach Centre church based in the university town of Gainesville, called off the book-burning after he claimed an agreement had been reached with Muslim leaders to move the controversial location of a planned Islamic cultural centre and mosque in New York.
The New York imam behind the development, however, said there was no agreement to move the mosque away from the former World Trade Centre site. Feisal Abdul Rauf said there had been no negotiations, while Manhattan real estate developer Sharif El-Gamal also denied that any talks had taken place. Gamal said the centre would go forward as planned.
The pastor's proposal to burn the Qur'an had drawn criticism from Barack Obama and religious and political leaders across the Muslim world.
It emerged tonight that the US defence secretary Robert Gates called Jones to ask him not to proceed with plans to burn the Muslim holy book, the Pentagon said.
Many people, both conservative and liberal, dismissed the threat as an attention-seeking stunt by the preacher. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs called him a "desperate man" who would endanger the lives of American troops abroad.
"This is a recruitment bonanza for al-Qaida," Obama said earlier in an ABC television interview.
"You could have serious violence in places like Pakistan or Afghanistan. This could increase the recruitment of individuals who would be willing to blow themselves up in American cities or European cities."
Obama, who has sought to improve relations with Muslims worldwide, spoke out in an effort to stop Jones from going ahead with his plan and head off spiralling anger among many Muslims.
The international police agency Interpol warned governments worldwide of an increased risk of terrorist attacks if the planned burning went ahead, and the state department issued a warning to Americans travelling overseas.
Jones's threat has caused worldwide alarm and raised tensions over the 9/11 anniversary, which this year coincides with the Muslim Eid al-Fitr festival ending the fasting month of Ramadan.
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