WASHINGTON (AFP) – A leader of the Ahmadiya Islamic minority on Tuesday implored US Muslims who would attack the country to leave, after a Pakistani-American was charged in a car bomb plot.
The Ahmadiya, who mostly hail from Pakistan and other South Asian nations, break with mainstream Islam by not believing Mohammed was the last prophet. They also advocate a separation of mosque and state.
Naseem Mahdi, the US Ahmadiya community's missionary-in-charge, said that Muslims across the United States faced both economic and social ruin unless they spoke up more loudly against violent elements.
"We have to stand up and say that this is nonsense, this is not acceptable to us. If our loyalties are somewhere else, why should we be here and enjoy the benefits of this beautiful country?" he told a news conference.
He denounced US citizens who would attack the country as leading "hypocritical lives."
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