Asian Muslims Denounce Attack on Iraq

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, March 20, 2003

Asian Muslims Denounce Attack on Iraq

Muslim leaders in Asia condemned the US attack on Iraq on Thursday and said Americans would never live in peace again.

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Muslim leaders in Asia condemned the US attack on Iraq on Thursday and said Americans would never live in peace again.

"This is not an attack on Islam but an attack on humanity," said Syafii Maarif, head of the 30-million-strong moderate Muhammadiyah Muslim group in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country.

Malaysia's conservative Islamic opposition said Allah would bring about the US superpower's eventual downfall.

"This despicable war exposes the ugliness of America and its allies," said Abdul Hadi Awang, the president of Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS).

"PAS is convinced that this war is the start of America's destruction because Allah will not let any major power reign supreme forever."

They were speaking within minutes of the United States and Britain launching attacks on Iraq in a war which President George W. Bush said could take longer and be more difficult than many had predicted.

Murid Timasaen, spokesman for Thailand's Muslims for Peace Group, said Americans would never live in peace again.

"They have attracted more enemies than ever, not only from the Muslim world, but also from the Buddhist community," he said.

"Countries like Iraq don't have the capacity to fight the Americans in a conventional war, so more terrorist means will be deployed against the Americans."

Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said Manila was giving political and moral support for actions to rid Iraq of weapons of mass destruction.

"The war has just begun," Arroyo said in a speech to graduates of the Philippine Military Academy.

"The Philippines is part of the coalition of the willing. We are giving political and moral support for actions to rid Iraq of weapons of mass destruction."

Some 275,000 US and troops had awaited the order from Bush to launch the assault on Iraq after an ultimatum expired for Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to give up power and go into exile.

"The greatest fears of ASEAN ministers are the upsurge of terrorism and the negative effects on the economy," said Philippine Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Lauro Baja who is in Malaysia attending a foreign ministers' meeting of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"The hopes of the international community is that this war will be short."

The cabinet in Indonesia would discuss the US attack at a meeting later on Thursday, chief security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told reporters.

He did not elaborate, but Foreign Ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa told Reuters an official response was being drafted and would be made public after the meeting.

China had no immediate comment on the start of hostilities but state television broadcast Bush's address live in a rare move.

Thailand said it wanted no part in the war.

"But we are ready to help rehabilitate (Iraq) after the fighting, up to the extent of our resources," Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said.

"At this stage, we hope the war casualties will be confined only to military targets and not on civilians."

Source: agencies

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