Excerpt:
The imam co-leading a drive to build an Islamic community center near the World Trade Center has politely brushed aside a suggestion by one of his past benefactors that the project be moved to a different spot.
"While we respect the points of view of other interested observers, we plan to build the community center in this location because we have been part of Lower Manhattan for decades and we want to better serve the needs of our neighbors of all faith traditions," Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf said Thursday in a statement e-mailed to The Associated Press.
Rauf was responding to a request for comment on remarks by Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, one of the world's richest men, who told a magazine based in the United Arab Emirates that he was against putting the center and mosque close to the site of the Sept. 11 attacks.