This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8447450.stm
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 5 | Version 6 |
|---|---|
| Churches attacked in Kuala Lumpur | Churches attacked in Kuala Lumpur |
| (3 days later) | |
| Three churches have been attacked in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur, ahead of protests by Muslim groups. | Three churches have been attacked in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur, ahead of protests by Muslim groups. |
| The administrative offices of one church were destroyed by a firebomb attack and one of the other two churches attacked was slightly damaged. | The administrative offices of one church were destroyed by a firebomb attack and one of the other two churches attacked was slightly damaged. |
| Some Muslim groups are angry at a court decision allowing non-Muslims to use the word Allah to refer to God. | Some Muslim groups are angry at a court decision allowing non-Muslims to use the word Allah to refer to God. |
| The government of the mainly Muslim nation has condemned the attacks on the churches and vowed to take action. | The government of the mainly Muslim nation has condemned the attacks on the churches and vowed to take action. |
| About 60% of Malaysians are Malay Muslims and the government relies on their vote. | About 60% of Malaysians are Malay Muslims and the government relies on their vote. |
| There also significant Chinese and Indian minorities, who are mainly Christians, Hindus and Buddhists. | There also significant Chinese and Indian minorities, who are mainly Christians, Hindus and Buddhists. |
| The controversy stems from a ban on a Catholic newspaper, The Herald, using the word Allah in its Malay-language edition. | The controversy stems from a ban on a Catholic newspaper, The Herald, using the word Allah in its Malay-language edition. |
| The Kuala Lumpur High Court struck down the three-year old ban on non-Muslims using of the word Allah. | The Kuala Lumpur High Court struck down the three-year old ban on non-Muslims using of the word Allah. |
| Some major Muslim organisations, including the Islamic political party, PAS, have agreed with the court, saying other Abrahamic religions - Christianity and Judiasm - may use the word. | Some major Muslim organisations, including the Islamic political party, PAS, have agreed with the court, saying other Abrahamic religions - Christianity and Judiasm - may use the word. |
| But some vocal groups, including the Muslim Youth Movement, Abim, have cast the use of the word Allah as a surreptitious effort on the part of Christians to try to seduce Muslims away from Islam. | But some vocal groups, including the Muslim Youth Movement, Abim, have cast the use of the word Allah as a surreptitious effort on the part of Christians to try to seduce Muslims away from Islam. |
| The government will take whatever steps it can to prevent such acts Prime Minister Najib Razak | The government will take whatever steps it can to prevent such acts Prime Minister Najib Razak |
| Church officials say that although the word Allah originated in Arabic, Malays have used it for centuries to refer generally to God, and Arabic-speaking Christians used it before Islam was founded, reports the BBC's religious affairs correspondent Robert Pigott. | Church officials say that although the word Allah originated in Arabic, Malays have used it for centuries to refer generally to God, and Arabic-speaking Christians used it before Islam was founded, reports the BBC's religious affairs correspondent Robert Pigott. |
| Molotov cocktails | Molotov cocktails |
| The argument has continued in the media and the courts for months but had not become violent - until assailants on motorbikes were seen smashing the windows of the Metro Tabernacle Church, a Protestant church in Kuala Lumpur on Friday. | The argument has continued in the media and the courts for months but had not become violent - until assailants on motorbikes were seen smashing the windows of the Metro Tabernacle Church, a Protestant church in Kuala Lumpur on Friday. |
| The ground floor office of the three-storey church was destroyed in a blaze a little after midnight, said Kevin Ang, a church spokesman. | The ground floor office of the three-storey church was destroyed in a blaze a little after midnight, said Kevin Ang, a church spokesman. |
| Most of Malaysia's population is Muslim | Most of Malaysia's population is Muslim |
| Kuala Lumpur police Chief Mohamad Sabtu Osman said police had found a wrench, an empty petrol tin and two scorched motorbikes at the scene. | Kuala Lumpur police Chief Mohamad Sabtu Osman said police had found a wrench, an empty petrol tin and two scorched motorbikes at the scene. |
| Separately, Molotov cocktails were thrown into the compounds of two other churches before dawn, causing minor damage in one and none in the other, church officials said. | Separately, Molotov cocktails were thrown into the compounds of two other churches before dawn, causing minor damage in one and none in the other, church officials said. |
| Prime Minister Najib Razak condemned the attacks, saying such actions would "destroy our country's harmony". | Prime Minister Najib Razak condemned the attacks, saying such actions would "destroy our country's harmony". |
| "The government will take whatever steps it can to prevent such acts," he said. | "The government will take whatever steps it can to prevent such acts," he said. |
| There was tight security at all churches in Malaysia and at several mosques where protests against the court's ruling took place, says the BBC's Jennifer Pak in Kuala Lumpur. | There was tight security at all churches in Malaysia and at several mosques where protests against the court's ruling took place, says the BBC's Jennifer Pak in Kuala Lumpur. |
| Mass nationwide demonstrations failed to materialise on Friday, but protesters at mosques in Kuala Lumpur carried placards reading "Allah is only for us" and "Heresy arises from words wrongly used". | Mass nationwide demonstrations failed to materialise on Friday, but protesters at mosques in Kuala Lumpur carried placards reading "Allah is only for us" and "Heresy arises from words wrongly used". |
| "I hope the court will understand the feeling of the majority Muslims of Malaysia," said Ahmad Johari, at the National Mosque. | "I hope the court will understand the feeling of the majority Muslims of Malaysia," said Ahmad Johari, at the National Mosque. |
| "We can fight to the death over this issue," he told Associated Press news agency. | "We can fight to the death over this issue," he told Associated Press news agency. |
| The government has appealed against the court verdict and the High Court has suspended the decision's implementation until the appeal is heard. | The government has appealed against the court verdict and the High Court has suspended the decision's implementation until the appeal is heard. |