MOSCOW, January 13 (Sputnik) — An annual conference to defend the teachings and person of the Prophet Muhammad and provide educational materials to understand and counter Islamophobia will take place in Texas on Saturday.
The event will occur just 10 days after the shooting massacre at the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, a terrorist attack partially in response to the weekly's publication of cartoons lampooning prominent political and religious figures, the Prophet Muhammad among them.
"Isn't it time we invested in defending our faith? Otherwise, groups like ISIS [Islamic State] and Boko Haram will only continue to increase the media's ammunition to incriminate Muslims," it adds.
The event is intended to raise funds for the creation of a Strategic Communication Center for the Muslim community that would implement effective responses to those forms of expression deemed anti-Islamic, such as cartoons or films depicting the Prophet Muhammad.
The conference will take place at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, Texas.
Among the participants of the conference are Muslim leaders from New York, Chicago and California, as well as Georgetown University professor and director of the Prince Alwaleed Center for Muslim–Christian Understanding at Georgetown John Esposito, and German journalist Kristiane Backer.
On January 7, three men attacked the office of Charlie Hebdo in Paris, killing 12 people and injuring 11 others. The two terrorists responsible for the attack were killed during a police raid. The third suspect turned himself in. Despite the attack, Charlie Hebdo vowed to continue its editorial policy. The cover of the new Charlie Hebdo edition due out on Wednesday will feature a cartoon depicting the Prophet Muhammad.
