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 PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) - Pakistan's religious schools face intensified scrutiny after the London suicide bombings, with Western leaders claiming that madrassas are breeding grounds for violent extremists. Defiant, educators insist their schools are unfairly targeted in a campaign against Islam.
"This is Western propaganda to defame Islam. They blame Muslims for everything," said Maulana Rahat Gul, 85, who runs Markaz Ulum-e-Islamia Islamic school in Peshawar, a city near the Afghan border.
Pakistan has been a prominent ally in the U.S.-led war on terror since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. But calls for tougher action against the madrassas have escalated since reports that one of the four alleged bombers in the July 7 London bus and subway attacks visited two such study centers during a trip to Pakistan.
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