AMMAN (Petra) — His Majesty King Abdullah on Friday told the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) that the Kingdom has been working with the international Islamic community in the struggle to oppose extremist interpretations of Islam.

“The greatest enemies of Islam are those who distort the teachings bestowed upon us by God and His Messenger,” the King said in a taped speech to the ISNA 2005 Annual Convention in Chicago.

The Monarch said it was time to stand together to reaffirm what has been said by the greatest scholars in Islam: That no Muslim has the right to call another Muslim a non-believer, and that a Muslim's life, honour and property are sacrosanct.

He stressed that these principles were confirmed in July this year by scholars attending the Islamic International Conference in Jordan.

The conference brought together over 180 top scholars from around the world representing all eight Islamic schools of thought, both Sunni and Shiite.

During his speech, the King warned against what he described as “extremists trying to justify their political agendas by issuing pseudo-fatwas,” and noted that July's conference had taken an important step by reaffirming the traditional criteria for issuing such fatwas.

“No matter what insults or offences Muslims may have suffered,” said the King, “nothing justifies taking innocent lives, no matter what religion or nationality they may be.”

The King urged all Muslims to return to the traditional teachings of Islam, and to apply the principles espoused by God and His blessed Messenger to the issues of the day.

“The American Muslim community provides a unique example of how Muslims throughout the world can join together,” he remarked.

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