"So I remain inexpert on precisely what he said, and I'm told he used notes and not text," Rumsfeld said

WASHINGTON, October 22 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – The Pentagon will open an internal investigation into controversial statements made by one of its top generals in which he claimed Muslims worship "an idol" and drew the war on terror as an American battle against "Satan".

Evangelical Lieutenant General William Boykin, deputy undersecretary of defense for intelligence, "has requested that an inspector general review this matter and I have indicated that if that's his request, I think it is appropriate," U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told a news conference.

Though conceding that Boykin's comments do not reflect his or U.S. President George Bush's views, Rumsfeld bristled at the criticism he has received for defending Boykin last week as "an officer that has an outstanding record."

"I have been highly criticized for not rushing to judgment and criticizing words that I've never even seen," Rumsfeld was quoted by CNN as saying.

The defense secretary, who last week said he had not seen Boykin's remarks, admitted he has since then viewed a network tape of the event.

But Rumsfeld stopped short of criticizing Boykin, much to the anger of Muslims in the U.S. and worldwide.

The tape was of poor quality and "had a lot of very difficult to understand words with subtitles which I was not able to verify," he argued.

"So I remain inexpert on precisely what he said, and I'm told he used notes and not text," Rumsfeld said.

Pentagon's reluctance to criticize Boykin’s remarks has drawn fire from critics who said the general’s views were damaging to U.S. efforts to win support in the Islamic world.

Reassignment Calls

Chairman Sen. John Warner, a Virginia Republican, urged that Boykin be reassigned, at least temporarily.

Boykin should be reassigned "temporarily, without any prejudice whatsoever ... take on another assignment until this matter is fully examined and studied and a report made to the secretary of defense," Warner said on the floor of the Senate.

He asserted that the inspector general's report should go to the Senate as well as to Rumsfeld.

Warner's office also released a copy of a letter he wrote to Rumsfeld Friday, along with Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan, the top Democrat on the committee, urging the Pentagon inspector general's office to conduct a "thorough review of the facts" and make "a determination as to whether there had been any inappropriate behavior" by Boykin.

"We recognize the right of every American to free speech. However, as is well established, there are limits on the right of expression for service members," read the letter.

There was no immediate reaction from the Pentagon to Warner's recommendation.

But Boykin later apologized for the remarks, saying he is not anti-Islam or any other religion.

One of his most widely quoted remarks referred to a Somali warlord who boasted that he would not be captured because Allah protect him.

"I knew that my God was bigger than his. I knew that my God was a real God and his was an idol," Boykin said.

He was also quoted as telling church groups that the war on terrorism was a Christian struggle against Satan.

The Bush administration has distanced itself from the general's remarks but so far has ignored calls by critics that he be reprimanded or reassigned.

"The president's views on this are absolutely clear, and I think the president is very clear on what he means here. This is not a war between religions. No one should describe it as such," National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rica had said.

Critics charge Boykin’s words undermine careful efforts by President Bush and Rumsfeld to avoid casting the war on terrorism in Christian vs. Muslim terms at a time when much of the Islamic world is awash in anti-American sentiment, said CNN.

"It will not help improve our relations with Muslims at all," Peter Pelz of the Soul of Europe, a group dedicated to bringing in religious tolerance across the world, had told IslamOnline.net in comments over the "outrageous" statements.

The Washington-based Interfaith Alliance also wrote to U.S. Bush that Boykin's remarks "fly in the face of the pleas of the president and violate the basic principles of tolerance and inclusion that are implicit in the culture of this nation."

Boykin was a former commander of the army's super secret Delta force and took part in special operations from Iran to Colombia to Somalia before being elevated to his current post in June.

As deputy under secretary for intelligence, he was charged with reinvigorating the hunt for Osama bin Laden and other "high value" targets.