The UAE has called upon Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to apologize again to all "Arabs and Muslims" for saying that Western civilization is superior to Islam, reiterating calls from different Arab and Muslim countries.
The Italian premier has already apologized, but Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa has said it was not enough.
The Khaleej Times quoted Saif Saeed bin Saad, undersecretary of the ministry of foreign affairs, as saying: "The regret expressed by the Italian premier, after the wave of condemnations his comments provoked in the Arab world, is not sufficient and he must apologize to Arabs and Muslims."
Saad’s remarks came as he received Ranieri Fornari, Italy's ambassador to the UAE, who presented to him a memorandum on the statement made by Berlusconi.
During talks with Fornari, the undersecretary protested against Berlusconi's "insolent remarks against Islam," the official WAM news agency said.
Berlusconi told reporters during a visit to Berlin on September 26 that the West "should be confident of the superiority of our civilisation" and urged Europe to "reconstitute itself on the basis of its Christian roots."
Saad told the ambassador that the remarks were a direct attack on Arab and Islamic civilisations, especially because they were made at a time the world was witnessing a dangerous development. Such a statement would reflect negatively on Arab-Italian relations, he added.
Berlusconi's reported comments have received widespread condemnation, not only from the Italian opposition and press, but also from leading European Union figures who are trying to build bridges with Muslim states and forge what the EU has described as "the broadest possible global coalition against terrorism."
Later, Berlusconi's spokesman defended the prime minister, saying he could not be accused of insulting Islam after having "fought for the participation of moderate Arab countries in the alliance against terrorism," and called for a solution to the crisis in the Middle East - Albawaba.com
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