The previously-noted global intifada continues fitfully under its latest pretext, Pope Benedict XVI's erudite call for non-violence among religions.
Early today it was the merciless killing of a defenseless missionary nun in Somalia. Now it's a threat of suicide attack against the Vatican itself.
A radical Muslim group threatened a suicide attack on the Vatican yesterday even as the Holy See said Pope Benedict regretted that some Muslims were offended by his comments about the role of violence in the spread of Islam.The pontiff "sincerely regrets that certain passages of his address could have sounded offensive to the sensitivities of the Muslim faithful, and should have been interpreted in a manner that in no way corresponds to his intentions," Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone said in a statement.
But the Pope's apology by proxy was not enough to quell a string of attacks against Christian churches on the West Bank and in Gaza. And Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood demanded a direct mea culpa from the head of the world's 1.1 billion Catholics....
An Iraqi insurgent group threatened the Vatican with a suicide attack over the Pope's remarks, according to a statement posted yesterday on the Web.
"We swear to God to send you people who adore death as much as you adore life," said the message posted in the name of the Mujahedeen Army on a Web site frequently used by militant groups. The message's authenticity could not be independently verified. The statement was addressed to "you dog of Rome" and threatens to "shake your thrones and break your crosses in your home."
Stand with the Pope.
Posted by Alan at September 17, 2006 05:03 PM