Bush Tells Al Arabiya He Is Not an 'Enemy of Islam', Says All Faiths Pray to Same God

In a television interview with Al Arabiya, US President George W. Bush rejected the claim that he is an "enemy of Islam", saying radicals had recast the conflict as America against Islam when it was "peaceful people versus radical people". He called Islam "a great religion that preaches peace" and said Muslims, Christians and others all pray "to the same God". Defining the enemy as religious radicals rather than a faith became the standard language of later interfaith peace efforts, while the same-God claim sits in tension with Christ's words that no one comes to the Father but by Him.