“Representatives of an east London mosque used by several of the terror suspects” say Fox News contributor Father Jonathan Morris misled them about his identity. The [U.K.] Guardian reports: “Mohammed Shoyaib, the imam of the Musjid-e-Umer mosque in Walthamstow, complained that he and other elders were tricked by a representative from the cable channel… The man spent several minutes conversing on camera with the imam and elders, but they reacted furiously when they learned he was Father Jonathan Morris, a religious pundit for Fox News.”
Shoyaib says “he introduced himself as priest working in Rome. Then he said he was working for peace in the world, that all faiths should work together for peace, that he needs a united message of peace for the American people. Only later he said he was from ‘a sister network of Sky News’, but never mentioned Fox.”
When he’s not on FNC, Morris is the vice rector for the Legionaries of Christ Seminary in Rome. Click continued for the CC transcript of Morris’ segment…
FNC 08/13/06 19:30:02: …so, where did these young muslim men learn to hate so much? that they now stand accused of plotting among the deadliest terror attacks in history. fox’s father jonathan morris went into the community some of the suspects came from to ask why so many young people are responding to the call of extremism. >> this is the mosque in east london, the worship place of several of the men who are arrested on thursday. i was determined to speak with the religious teachers of men who are now suspects in a terrible plot. and to ask them the tough questions. >> we were quickly turned away, but when the leader of this mosque saw that i was alone, away from the other media members he came across the street and offered to talk. a crowd soon gathered and we let the camera roll. and some of these men, we don’t know if it’s true, but if some of the men who are held right now are shown to be involved in something that is not peaceful, when they come to the mosque, when they come to your mosque, do they receive the teachings that you just told me, that religion, true islam is religion of peace? >> everybody– after the 7-7 bombings and mosque listen and it’s open to all, not only– it’s open to all, it’s a transmitter system in the square and anyone, even if you put on the– you can even– >> are there any, yes? >> we don’t follow the christian ideology, not on camera, please. we don’t follow the christianity of turn the other cheek, and christians of follow that either. >> one of the questions that americans have right now is that we don’t see that muslim leaders coming together as a whole to say, this is not true islam. why don’t we see that? >> i think it’s better to ask the question to the leaders– >> okay. >> the reason is that the people don’t come to us. >> is that right. >> you go to the wrong people. they want news and they want speculation. they want something to further their– whatever their aims are, so they won’t come to it, they’ll come to the people. and the vast majority of muslims in this country, probably everywhere are peaceful muslims. >> and having spent the day in this little town and spoken to the leader of this mosque who has disassociated himself completely from terrorism and from the young men who have been arrested, the question still remains, if they are proven guilty, then where does their hate come from? in east london, father jonathan morris, fox news.