Free Republic

A Defense Department official visited a Virginia mosque Friday to reiterate the White House's apologies for the burning of Korans at a US military base in Afghanistan, pledging that those responsible will be held "appropriately accountable." Peter Lavoy, acting assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific security affairs, attended services at the ADAMS Center in Sterling, Va., and told the congregation he was there to express his "sincere regret" on behalf of the Department of Defense for the incident. On Monday, coalition forces at Bagram Air Field brought a truckload of Islamic holy books from a detention facility to...

STERLING, Va. (AP) - A senior Pentagon official is apologizing to Washington-area Muslims for the burning of Qurans at a military base in Afghanistan. Peter Lavoy, acting assistant secretary of defense for Asia and Pacific security affairs, says the military is investigating and that all troops are being retrained in the handling of religious materials. Lavoy's remarks were Friday at a mosque in suburban Washington, D.C. They come after protests across Afghanistan over the burning of several Qurans at a U.S. military base. Military officials say 20 people have died in the protests, including two U.S. soldiers.