NPR: The pastor of a Florida church says he does not plan to burn any more Qurans — but Terry Jones has said that before.
Jones first made headlines around the world last September, when he announced — and then called off — plans to publicly burn a copy of the Quran at his church in Gainesville, Fla. But on March 20, he actually did it — and though it drew little media attention at the time, it has since sparked protests in Afghanistan that have claimed 20 lives.
Jones' event was markedly different from the scene outside his church last year, when reporters, cameras and satellite trucks made him a dubious worldwide celebrity — at least for a while.
To make sure the word got out, Jones' church, the Dove World Outreach Center, videotaped the event and put it up on its website. It was a mock trial, complete with a prosecutor, a jury of church members and a judge played by Jones himself. The charges: "The Quran is charged with death, rape, torture of people worldwide whose only crime is not being of the Islamic faith."
At the conclusion of the trial, Jones and his jurors pronounce the Quran guilty, and a kerosene-soaked copy of the Muslim holy book is placed on a barbecue grill and set aflame.
Jones says he did it to raise awareness about the nature of radical Islam and was surprised when it attracted little notice at first. A few days later, however, the small flame Jones lit in Gainesville was kindled into something much larger half a world away.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai strongly condemned the act, leading to a series of protests in Afghanistan that have claimed more than 20 lives, including those of seven U.N. employees.
Jones says he feels no responsibility for those deaths. » | Greg Allen | Wednesday, April 06, 2011
