WASHINGTON, Dec 8: President George W. Bush made a bold attempt to educate Americans about Islam and Muslim culture when he visited the Islamic center in Washington this week to share Eid celebrations with the local faithful.

The visit was appreciated by all major Muslim organizations in North America “from the American Muslim Council to the Council of American Islamic Relations” who complain that after the Sept 11 terrorist attacks America has become a difficult place for Muslims to live.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch recently reported a 1,700 per cent increase in hate crimes against Muslims and The World Street Journal says that this increasingly hostile environment has forced many Muslims to change their names. A large number of Pakistani youngsters, the report says, now identify themselves as Indians.

Being aware of these issues, President Bush focused his speech, which was directly televised by the major US television channels, on explaining Islamic practices for the ordinary Americans.

“Millions of our fellow Americans practice the Muslim faith. They lead lives of honesty, justice and compassion,” the president said while reading his Eid message before a select gathering.

Several thousand Muslims gathered at the center earlier on Thursday to say Eid prayers, braving snowstorm and freezing cold.

The mosque, however, was emptied for Bush for security reasons, allowing him to read his message before a select group of imams, or prayer leaders, from other mosques in the greater Washington area.

“The spirit behind this holiday is a reminder that Islam brings hope and comfort to more than a billion people worldwide. Islam affirms God’s justice and insists on man’s moral responsibility,” said Bush. “This holiday is also an occasion to remember that Islam gave birth to a rich civilization of learning that has benefited mankind.”

Dispelling the impression, popularized in the United States after the Sept 11 terrorist attacks, that Islam was a strange faith, unrelated to other religions of the world, Bush said: “Islam traces its origins back to God’s call on Abraham. And Ramazan commemorates the revelation of God’s word in the Holy Quran to the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH)— a word that is read and recited with special attention and reverence by Muslims during this season.”

He then explained how in Ramazan, Muslims take “no food or water during daylight hours, in order to refocus their minds on faith and redirect their hearts to charity.”

The president also spoke on another controversial issue, the Muslim practice of giving charity, telling the Americans that not all charity the Muslim give went to terrorists.

The US officials and anti-terrorism experts have long accused Muslim charities of being a major source of financing for Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups.

Muslim governments have denied the charge, saying that only a handful of charities are involved in such activities while the rest provide humanitarian services to the needy.

In Ramazan, Muslims worldwide stretch out a hand of mercy to those in need, said the president. “Charity tables at which the poor can break their fast line the streets of cities and towns. And gifts of food and clothing and money are distributed to ensure that all share in God’s abundance.”

Muslims often invited members of other families to their iftar meals, demonstrating a spirit of tolerance, he added.

Bush then explained the importance of Eid to the American, saying that on this occasion Muslims celebrate the completion of their fast and the blessings of renewed faith that had come with it.

“Customs vary between countries — from illuminating lanterns in Egypt to lighting firecrackers in Pakistan, to inviting elders to traditional feasts in Niger,” the president said.

“Around the world, families and neighbours and friends gather to share traditional foods, and congratulate each other on meeting the test of Ramazan.”

He said that in the United States, Muslim citizens were making many contributions in business, science, law, medicine, education and other fields.

“The Muslim members of our armed forces and of my administration are serving their fellow Americans with distinction, upholding our nation’s ideals of liberty and justice in a world at peace,” he said.

“On behalf of Laura Bush and our family and the American people, I bring our best wishes to all who worship here, and to Muslims throughout the world for a joyous Eid, and for health and happiness and prosperity in the year to come,” the president said, ending his message with the traditional Islamic greeting of “Eid Mubarak”.

“The president today made it clear that he does not agree with those who equate Islam with terrorism. It’s a message that will promote peace and harmony between the Muslims and other Americans,” said Yusuf Saleem, imam of a Washington’s major mosque, Masjid Muhammad.

“His message and his visit to the mosque will be appreciated not only by the American Muslims but by the Muslims around the world,” said Abdullah Khouj, director of the Islamic Center.

Inaugurated in 1957 by President Dwight Eisenhower, the Islamic Center has served as a place of worship for the Muslims of greater Washington area for more than four decades. Its 160-foot-high minaret and the mosaic inscriptions in Arabic verses from the Holy Quran attract non-Muslim visitors as well. The center also houses a library of works about Islam and holds changing exhibitions.

Bush first visited the center and the adjacent mosque soon after the Sept 11 terrorist attacks to assure the Muslims that the US-led war against terrorism was not directed against them.

During his previous visit to the center on Sept 17, Bush declared that the terrorist attacks against the United States were “acts of violence against innocents (that) violate the fundamental tenets of the Islamic faith, and it’s important for my fellow Americans to understand that.”

“The face of terror is not the true faith of Islam,” Bush said. “That’s not what Islam is all about. Islam is peace. These terrorists don’t represent peace. They represent evil and war.”

Bush also called for tolerance towards Arab-Americans.

Earlier on Thursday, Bush met Muslim schoolchildren who told stories and recited poems for him. Some of them also showed him their artwork.

“I am overwhelmed. It’s so nice of him to have come. I am very, very happy,” said 7-year-old Aqsa who had come from Virginia to meet the president.