[UPDATE] -- (AP) (10:08AM 9/9) --

New York's governor says the imam behind the proposed Islamic community center near ground zero has offered an "opening" with his latest comments about the debate.

Gov. David Paterson said on September 9 that he saw Rauf's comments as a move "in the right direction."

Paterson declined to comment on Rauf's remarks that the mosque
issue has become so politicized that moving it could endanger
national security.

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New York, NY (AP) - The imam behind a proposed Islamic community
center and mosque near ground zero says moving it could cause a
violent backlash from Muslim extremists and endanger national
security.
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf says the discourse surrounding
the planned facility has become so politicized that moving it could
result in violence.
He says the reaction in the Muslim world could be more furious
than the eruption of violence following the 2005 publication of
Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
Rauf made the comments in an interview broadcast Wednesday night
on CNN.
Opponents say the mosque should be moved farther away from where
Islamic extremists destroyed the World Trade Center and killed
nearly 2,800 people. Supporters say religious freedom should be
protected.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)