BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel defended Pope Benedict on Saturday against allegations that he had attacked Islam as worldwide Muslim fury continued over a speech he made earlier this week.

Merkel told the mass-circulation Bild newspaper in an interview that the German-born Pontiff had been calling for dialogue with other religions.

In a speech on Tuesday during a visit to Germany, the Pope appeared to endorse a Christian view, contested by most Muslims, that the early Muslims spread their religion by violence. But Merkel said his comments had been misinterpreted.

"Whoever criticises the Pope misunderstood the aim of his speech," Merkel was quoted as saying.

"It was an invitation to dialogue between religions and the Pope expressedly spoke in favour of this dialogue ... What Benedict XVI emphasised was a decisive and uncompromising renunciation of all forms of violence in the name of religion."

Muslims around the world have deplored the Catholic leader's remarks and many say he should apologise in person to dispel the impression that he had joined a campaign against their religion.

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi on Friday defended the Pope's comments and said he did not mean to offend Muslims.

"He should apologise to Muslims," the president of the German Council of Muslims, Ayyub Axel Koehler, told the Neue Presse newspaper on Saturday. "That would be a contribution towards unwinding the tension and creating clarity."

Muslim figures elsewhere also continued to assail the Pope's comments, with one Turkish politician quoted as comparing him to the World War Two dictators of Germany and Italy, Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.

"How can (the Pope) imply that Muslims are the creators of terrorism in the world while it is the followers of Christianity who have aggressed against every country of the Islamic world?" prominent Saudi cleric Salman al-Odeh said.

"Who attacked Afghanistan and who invaded Iraq? ... The Pope's statements are an attempt to put a religious cover on injustice and political aggression practised by the American administration against Muslims."

"PERSUASIVE APOLOGY" NEEDED

Turkey's nationalist paper Vatan quoted Salih Kapusuz, head of the ruling Justice and Development Party's parliamentary group as saying Benedict's comments stemmed from "a deplorable ignorance that show he does not know the facts about Islam.

"The mentality of the Crusades has returned. (Benedict) will go down in history in the same category as leaders such as Hitler and Mussolini."

Criticism of the Pope was not confined to Muslims. The New York Times said in an editorial on Saturday that he must issue a "deep and persuasive" apology for quotes used in his speech.

"The world listens carefully to the words of any pope. And it is tragic and dangerous when one sows pain, either deliberately or carelessly," the Times said.

"He needs to offer a deep and persuasive apology, demonstrating that words can also heal," it added.

The Pope on Tuesday repeated criticism of the Prophet Mohammad by the 14th century Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaeologus, who said everything Mohammad brought was evil "such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached".

The Pope, who used the terms "jihad" and "holy war" in his lecture, added "violence is incompatible with the nature of God and the nature of the soul".

The furore over the speech follows violent protests by some Muslims last year over the publication in a Danish paper of satirical cartoons of Mohammad.

"Now there is the risk that the protests that there were over the cartoon row could begin again," Koehler said. "The indignation should not be allowed to escalate any further."

He said violence would not be justified but added that the Pope's speech was a step backwards in the dialogue between the two religions. He also questioned a visit the Pope plans to make to Turkey.

"I can scarcely believe that the trip to Turkey would be possible against the background of these protests," he said.

Muslims around the world have deplored the Catholic leader's remarks and many say he should apologise in person to dispel the impression that he had joined a campaign against their religion.

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi on Friday defended the Pope's comments and said he did not mean to offend Muslims.

"He should apologise to Muslims," the president of the German Council of Muslims, Ayyub Axel Koehler, told the Neue Presse newspaper on Saturday. "That would be a contribution towards unwinding the tension and creating clarity."

Muslim figures elsewhere also continued to assail the Pope's comments, with one Turkish politician quoted as comparing him to the World War Two dictators of Germany and Italy, Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
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