Egypt yesterday regretted anti-Islam
statements made by Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in which
he said that Western civilisation was superior to Islam.
"The
Arab Republic of Egypt is waiting for a quick clarification and
comment from the Italian government on these strange remarks and
whether or not they represent the official view of the country,"
said an official quoted by Egypt's Middle East News Agency.
The
statement said that Berlusconi's remarks contradicted his stance and
that of Italy's President Carlo Ciampi during talks with President
Hosni Mubarak in Rome last Tuesday.
The Italian premier's
statement, the official told MENA, showed a clear lack of knowledge
on the Islamic doctrines calling for understanding and peaceful
coexistence among nations regardless of their religions.
The
official said that the government of Italy should elaborate whether
Berlusconi's remarks represented an official Italian
stance.
Muslims around the world demanded an apology and the
European Union voiced concern over the remarks by Berlusconi, who
took office in June amid concerns outside Italy about his far-right
political partners.
Officials in Islamic countries have voiced
concern over an anti-Muslim backlash in the West after the attacks
in New York and Washington.
Berlusconi said yesterday his words
had been taken out of context and had not meant to offend.
"They
have tried to hang me on an isolated word, taken out of context from
my whole speech," Berlusconi told Italy's Upper House of parliament.
"I am sorry that words, badly interpreted, have offended the
sensibility of my Arab and Muslim friends.
The billionaire
businessman-turned-politician told reporters during a visit to
Germany on Wednesday that the West should be aware of "the
superiority" of its civilisation, saying it created wealth and
guaranteed respect for human rights.
Germany distanced itself
from Berlusconi's remarks. "It is absurd to express oneself in a way
that creates the impression that one wants to pit cultures against
each other. This is not something the federal government does,"
government spokesman Uwe-Karsten Heye said at a news
conference.
Heye said the German government did not want Arabs or
Muslims to be discriminated against following the attacks on the
United States.
"The Chancellor put extraordinary emphasis on
making clear that the Islamic population in Germany is involved in
the big thinking that is necessary in order to stand one's ground
against international terrorism," Heye said.
In Beirut, a Foreign
Ministry spokeswoman said that Lebanon had asked Italy to clarify
Berlusconi's statement.
She added that Italian Ambassador
Guiseppe Cassini had been asked to provide the full text of the
remarks Berlusconi made in Berlin on
Wednesday.
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