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Farooq Siddique backs letter condemning Osama Bin Laden

5 October 2007

Farooq Siddique, the University’s Muslim chaplain and a member of the Bristol Muslim Cultural Society (BMCS), has backed the BMCS decision to publish an open letter to Osama Bin Laden.

Farooq Siddique, Muslim chaplain at the University’s Multifaith Chaplaincy and a member of BMCS, is quoted in an online BBC report (Tuesday 2 October) as saying that the reaction to publishing the letter had been positive.

The letter was written by Sheikh Salman b. Fahd al-Oadah, general supervisor of IslamToday.com, and was letter read out on the US network, NBC, on 14 September. The intention was to challenge misconceptions about Islam and the route to radicalisation. ‘This has not been said before in English by a high-level Muslim scholar,’ said Mr Siddique.

The BMCS’s decision to publish prompted concerns among some people that it would bring unnecessary negative attention to the Muslim community. But, said Mr Siddique, ‘the reaction since we published has been positive. We’ve had support from other faith groups.’

The full text of the letter appears on the Islam Today website.

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