BURSA
Turkey's European Union Minister Egemen Bagis on Monday said the anti-Islamic film, "Innocence of Muslims," was an attempt to influence the upcoming U.S. presidential elections.
"This film [...] is an attempt to manipulate American elections by provoking people in the Middle East by insulting their faith," Bagis told reporters in the northwestern province of Bursa.
The film, which insults and degrades the Holy Prophet Mohammad, has sparked anger across the Muslim world and widespread protests some of which turned violent.
Bagis said Muslims should avoid resorting to violence in showing their reactions to the inflammatory film, adding that Muslims had a responsibility to spread "Islam's true messages of peace and welfare."
"In this sense, [Turkish] Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's call to the United Nations is of great importance where he urged the nations to proclaim insulting faiths and religions as crime against humanity," Bagis said.
