Paul Harvey has caved in to pressure from radical Islamic front group CAIR: Paul Harvey: Islam ‘religion of peace’. How disappointing. Every time CAIR succeeds in extorting an apology from a public figure, they are emboldened to push their agenda that much farther.

Responding to a demand for apology from a Muslim lobby group, radio commentator Paul Harvey issued a conciliatory statement yesterday suggesting “Islam is a religion of peace.”

Last week, the Washington, D.C.-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, contended Harvey defamed Islam in his noon commentary by asserting the religion “encourages killing.”

Harvey’s statement, which did not offer an explicit apology, was presented by a fill-in for his noon show, Doug Limerick.

About two-thirds through the 15- minute broadcast, Limerick said:

Last week [Harvey] told you about bloody cockfights in Iraq and mentioned the relationship between Islam and violence. He says he received several letters from dear friends in the American Muslim community who expressed their disgust with those who have hijacked their religion to achieve their goal through violence. They reminded all of us that Islam is a religion of peace, that terrorists do not represent Islam.

CAIR executive director Nihad Awad, who is not one of the CAIR officials recently arrested for links to terrorism, but is a former director of the Islamic Association of Palestine and who has openly expressed support for Hamas, gloats:

In a statement after yesterday’s broadcast, CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad said: “We would like to thank all those who took the time to speak out in defense of Islam. Once again, we see that positive actions bring positive results.”

Awad also offered to arrange a meeting between Harvey and American Muslim leaders to “begin a dialogue on issues related to Islam.”

As WorldNetDaily reported, CAIR’s chairman of the board, Omar Ahmad, was cited by a California newspaper in 1998 declaring the Quran should be America’s highest authority.

Ahmad also was reported to have said Islam is not in America to be equal to any other religion but to be dominant. Three former CAIR employees have been arrested in the past 12 months in connection with investigations related to terrorism.