The pastor of a tiny, fringe evangelical church in Florida on Tuesday rebuffed a plea for restraint from Gen. David H. Petraeus, who warned that a plan to burn the Muslim holy book could provoke violence against American troops and citizens overseas.

‘Instead of possibly blaming us for what could happen, we put the blame where it belongs – on the people who would do it,’ Pastor Terry Jones of the 50-member Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Fla., told the Associated Press. ‘We should address radical Islam and send a very clear warning that they are not to retaliate in any form.’

Jones also said he was still praying over his decision and hinted that he might change his mind. ‘We understand the general’s concerns and we are taking those into consideration,’ he told WOFL-TV in Orlando.

A coalition of Muslim, Christian and Jewish leaders held a news conference in Washington on Tuesday to condemn Jones’ statements and other slurs aimed at Muslims nationwide.

‘The threatened burning of copies of the Holy Koran this Saturday is a particularly egregious offense that demands the strongest possible condemnation by all who value civility in public life and seek to honor the sacred memory of those […]