Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan said islamophobia was as dangerous a phenomenon as racism and anti-semitism, Anadolu Agency reported.
In his address to the US-Islamic World Forum in Doha on Saturday, Erdogan said tendencies towards cultural conflicts was as dangerous as, and may be even more dangerous than international terrorism, spread of nuclear weapons and environmental problems.
"Such views that would bring civilizations against each other, creates psychological barriers between peoples. Problems like racism, intolerance, discrimination, extremism are insidiously trying to diffuse into societies like deadly diseases," said Erdogan.
He said concepts of "Islam" and "Muslim" in the western world were being depicted with negative connotations in popular culture products like movies, TV series, music, photos and cartoons, even in scientific researches, noting that in a way cultural antagonism was pumped into the subconscious of the people.
Erdogan pointed out that the local outfits of the people of certain Islamic countries, their beards, and veils, some of their common words were depicted as accessories of terrorism, noting that pumping of such antagonism created deep fears in societies and causing them to look at each other with suspicion.
He said generalization of acts of terror in away to blame it on the whole Islamic World and muslims were wrong, noting that victims of acts of terror was muslims again for the most part.
He said none of the divine religions would approve of terrorism adding that islamophobia was as dangerous a phenomenon as racism and anti-semitism, calling on the U.S. and EU to take measures against islamophopia growing insidiously in their territories.
Erdogan said Islamic countries were mentioned together with violations of rights urging these countries to make self criticism and question the reasons of this negative image.
Erdogan called on the islamic world to display the same reaction to all crimes against humanity without discriminating.
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