January 1, Archbishop of Canterbury Pulls Award After Cleric’s Osama bin Laden Praise Exposed

Wyatt’s Take

• The Archbishop of Canterbury yanked back an award once the cleric’s past praise for Osama bin Laden came out.
• Timing couldn’t have been worse, handing the honor out on the 25th anniversary of 9/11.
• Lambeth Palace tried to blame context, but America remembers what bin Laden did and who cheered it.

The Archbishop of Canterbury’s office yanked an interfaith award from a Muslim cleric once his old remarks praising Osama bin Laden came to light.

Maulana Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi had received the Hubert Walter Award for Reconciliation and Interfaith Cooperation at Lambeth Palace last Friday, right on the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

Lambeth Palace announced the reversal on Thursday after those comments surfaced and forced a rethink.

“It is a longstanding principle of interfaith dialogue and co-operation that we must engage with one another across deeply-held differences, and that remains the case,” Lambeth Palace said in a statement.

“However, previous comments made by Imam Ashrafi have come to light that have led Lambeth Palace to reconsider this award and we can now confirm today that the award has been withdrawn,” the statement continued. “We have contacted Imam Ashrafi to make him aware of this decision.”

Lambeth Palace added that it continues “to pray for the Christian community in Pakistan, and for all those working for interfaith dialogue and harmony in Pakistan and around the world.”

According to Lambeth Palace, the award was given to Ashrafi because of his “longstanding support for religious minorities in Pakistan, particularly the Christian community.”

According to the BBC, Ashrafi said in 2007 that bin Laden had “been fighting for Islam against the Russians, Americans and British.”

The BBC also reported that Ashrafi said he would give bin Laden the title “Saifullah,” meaning “Sword of God.”

Ashrafi told the BBC that his remarks had been “totally taken out of context” and described the backlash against him as an “unfair campaign.”

He said he made the remarks about bin Laden in 2007 in response to “the hurt felt by many Muslims” over the British government’s decision to knight Salman Rushdie.

During the award presentation last week, the Archbishop’s office said Ashrafi was being honored for “his outstanding work as an ambassador of interfaith harmony in Pakistan, known for his commitment to promoting religious tolerance.”

Wyatt Matters

Middle America still honors the victims of 9/11 and expects leaders to do the same instead of handing out awards to anyone who once praised the man behind the attacks.