pastor terry jones runs what is essentially a fringe movement. his plans to burn the koran earned him a personal warning this morning from the president. >> if he is listening, i hope he understands that what he is proposing to do is completely contrary to our values as americans, that this country has been built on the notions of religious freedom and religious tolerance. >> demonstrations were held in pakistan and afghanistan. protesters even burned an american flag to show how much they oppose koran-burning. just after 1:00 p.m. in washington, the state department warned americans abroad to be cautious. three hours later, pastor jones himself came out. the koran-burning is off, he says, because an imam in new york has agreed not to build the community center near ground zero. >> the imam has agreed to move the mosque. we have agreed to cancel our event on saturday. on saturday, i will be flying up there to meet with him. >> this is the building the pastor is talking about. the trouble is, minutes after he spoke, the imam in new york said he ha

terry jones and fred phelps demonstrate is a kind of get out of the dangerous called abusive ghetto well shame i ask you this surely let me ask you this first of all so when you scream too loud your sound goes out just to let you know that i am this press release that you wrote today you wrote god hates america i've got it's america why do you live here. well we're almost through with our testimony to this country and when we are god will take us out of this country you understand all roads lead to the united states supreme court when that when that supreme court upholds the rule of law and says that we have done exactly what we were entitled to do under the law this nation's going to throw such a fit what is that what is that i have to clarify what is it that the supreme court is going to validate here on the last time i was on your program was over that snyder case and it's coming up on october the sixth this supreme court's going to rule on whether or not we have a first amendment or dot and when and what they're going to do is uphold the rule of law because what they're going to

t y se habrá cancelado la polémica de quemar los coránes pero la polémica de terry jones continúa. no se conmemora en gainesville. >> esto último no se pudo confirmar pero la decisión de jones ocurrió después que el presidente obama le envió este mensaje durante el programa "buenos días américa.". quisiera que él que un ten diera que podría poner en peligro a los jóvenes soldados afirmó obama. >> la afirmación del primer mandatario se hizo eco en todos lados. llamando a la fecha el día internacional de la quema del corán, a pesar de la decisión de jones la interpol mantiene alerta global advertido de la alta posibilidad de que se produzcan ataques violentos en respuesta del pastor estadouniden estadounidense. >> según el informe de terry jones data de mucho antes de los ataques del 9/11 el ex administrador de un hotel fundó una iglesia en alemania en dónde se pro fun skwoi sus seguidores lo echaron por robarse los fondos. los problemas lo siguieron a jones. por vender muebles y su sitio en internet quedó bloqueado. >> mientras tanto afirmó que nunca le había di

still, terry jones seems to have crossed a line. a line that is clear to so many christians, like pastor dan johnson of the trinity united methodist church in gainesville. from a christian standpoint, what's wrong with burning a koran? >> from a christian perspective, we are taught in our scriptures to honor, love and respect other people and treat them as we would want to be treated. >> reporter: but that vision of christianity is a far cry from what terry jones professes. terry moran, abc news. >>> and next week, we're going to start a "world news" series, answering the most pointed and important questions about islam. so, please give us your questions at our website, abcnews.com/worldnews, and we will address them. >>> flood warnings are up in texas and oklahoma tonight, a dangerous situation with water rising fast after tropical storm hermine dumped more than a foot of rain in some places. at least two people have been killed. many others left stranded, waiting to be rescued. and abc was there. here's ryan owens from dallas. >>

jones who wants to burn the koran because dr terry jones is saying what they would like to say but are afraid to say dr terry jones is using hateful invective that even many of the tea party members recognize does not play well in the national media terry is doing a great favor for them and i think that's why they're not addressing it i don't think ultimately they care all that much whether the burning of korans leads to uprising around the world in fact they might they might want that the might desire that because then they can say look these people these scary brown people who read the koran they are all out to get us they all are out to get us we must must must fund war military interventions so to speak in muslim countries why hope you're wrong you know i hope more people start pointing them out and calling them out for this very quickly eliot spitzer is going to have a new show on c.n.n. which i mean i don't know we didn't think he was going to be all that exciting and then we saw this clip let's take a look. the name of our show we have to name it something. you know what you're.

and some, like terry jones, are ready for the fight. you're prepared to do this, and prepared and ready to incite violence? >> we're definitely prepared to do this. we're definitely prepared to give our lives for this particular message and cause, yes. >> reporter: will you be armed? >> yes, we will. yes. >> reporter: so we could see a gun battle out here. >> we could. we have been threatened. >> reporter: jones says he's been asked directly by the fbi, the department of justice and local gainesville law enforcement not to go through with the koran burning. but he won't listen. to them, at least. if you listen to him closely, though, you get the sense that he may be looking, praying, for a way out of a terrible corner he's painted himself into. >> reporter: you're going to go through with this? >> as of right now, we have every intention. in going through, yes. >> reporter: what would change your mind? >> yeah, i guess the same thing that caused us to do it. just a deep conviction from god that something has to happen. >> reporter: so,

. >>> los planes de quemar e jem bla res del corán siguen adelante dice el pastor terry jones, en la florida, hemos recibido manifestaciones de estimulo y ejemplares del textos la fogata será este sábado cuando se conmemore el noveno aniversario de los ataques de 2001. >>> los que están en el medio oriente son los que van a pagar, va a pasarlo mismo todo el tiempo >>> esto es lo que divide a la gente e incentiva a la oposición dice, terry jones el pastor d una iglesia del estado de la florida dio 5 razones para hacer esto, impactar al mundo lograr que la gente empiece a hacer preguntas difíciles, recordar al mundo que todavía tenemos lif libertad de expresión exponer la ver dar y forzar a tomar acción es un hombre que busca llamar la atención y que es forma de aparecer en la televisión por medio de un acto que es anti cristiano. >>> las reacciones son nivel mundial el diario de vaticano calificó el hecho de indignante y grave. >>> la secretaria de estado dijo que el acto pondría en peligro la vida de las tropas en el extranjero. >>> y angelina jolie que está en pakistán

that is the message president obama is pushing as he urges terry jones not to do it. the event was planned for saturday on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. he is heeding criticism from the white house and one of the most senior generals. >> worrying signs, a possible gathering storm. the american pastor may have called off plans to bernie koran, but has not stopped -- burn the koran. this was jalal above earlier today. -- jalalabad earlier today. three demonstrators were shot by afghan security guards when they besieged the premier in the north of the country. in kabul, president karzai spoke out with a new warning to terry jones, that he should not think of carrying out his threat. >> any a front against the koran was a humiliation to muslims everywhere. , >> this prompted a new intervention on american television from general petraeus. >> there has been some damage done. you have heard of demonstrations here in afghanistan. they are already images implanted in the minds. >> this afternoon president obama weighed in again with more strong words, making clear he t

pastor terry jones said it's part of an agreement to move a planned islamic cultural center away from ground zero. though the center's imam tonight insisted there is no such deal and he says he's never even spoken to jones. the pastor's decision followed an appeal from president obama and a personal phone call from defense secretary robert gates. all of this as the state department has issued a warning to americans traveling overseas of possible revenge attacks, and even as there were more protests today in muslim nations. there is a lot to report tonight. kelly cobiella begins our coverage in gainesville, florida, kelly. >> reporter: good evening, harry. pastor terry jones has spent the entire day inside his church, then late in the day, came out with this completely unexpected announcement that he was calling off his protest on saturday in exchange for a promise that the controversial islamic center planned near ground zero would be moved. >> the imam has agreed to move the mosque. we have agreed to cancel our event on saturday, and on saturday i will be flying up there to meet with

officials, pastor terry jones has vowed to go ahead with his koran bonfire. even a neighboring pastor is organizing an effort to stop jones. >> i've called him. i've not gotten any response. tomorrow a group of interfaith clergy, muslim, christian, jewish, will present a petition to him that will have over 6,000 sigalert tours, possibly more, asking him not to burn the koran. >> the florida governor says he will close low monitor pastor terry jones and what happens at the dove world outreach this weekend. >>> a 7-year-old antioch girl is in critical condition after she was hit by a car when she ran into a street chasing a toy. police say at about 6:40 p.m. yesterday the girl darted into west sixth street near c street into the path of an on coming car. the driver tried to stop and swerved but still hit the girl and knocked her to the ground. the girl was flown to the hospital. >>> fire investigators want to know why an oakland apartment complex went up in flames twice. it's a devastating loss for the people who live there. kraig debro reports. >> reporter: an

as the koran burning row continues, pastor terry route --. -- terry jones goes to new york. one of the three americans accused of spying and iran will not be released. a planning a comeback, pakistan's former military ruler tells the bbc he is forming a political party and wants to lead the country again. and if it is september, it must be toronto, a hollywood a-lister heading to canada for the international film festival. >>> welcome to "bbc world news," broadcasting in the u.k. and around the world. the american pastor who drew international condemnation for planning to burn the car ran up on the anniversary of 9/11 has arrived in new york, where he is expected to meet the iman behind plans for a controversy a mosque near ground zero. pastor terry jones says it may still happen. >> the president was forced to spend a fair bit of a rare news conference making appeals for tolerance, saying that muslims were neighbors and friends. he can hardly not respond to the threats. the trouble is it looks like he is giving more publicity to a group that is on the fringe. pastor jones i

. >> part of the reason, of course, this anniversary has become so politicized is pastor terry jones, who had planned to burn korans today. but then, he called it off. he arrived here in new york city late last night, hoping to meet with the imam behind that planned cultural center near ground zero. >>> meanwhile, in afghanistan, there's angry street protests over the proposed koran burning. even though it didn't happen. our martha raddatz is in afghanistan. we'll go live to her in a minute. >>> we begin at ground zero. for months, it's been the site of protest over the proposed mosque. today is no exception. but there will also be memorials taking place. john berman is there live. good morning, john. >> reporter: good morning, bianna. it is such a beautiful morning here in new york city, just like it was nine years ago. the soceremonies to commemorate events are going on. but also controversy. the proposed islamic center near ground zero. and, of course, the pastor from florida, here in new york city. >> you had a lot to say before. >> maybe that's why i'm up. >> reporter: not a lot

will militant fundamentalist terry jones heed their words? terry moran flew to florida today to find out more about this pastor, causing so much attention and ask him, in effect, what would jesus do? terry? >> reporter: well, diane, pastor terry jones was ordained a minister in california in the early 1970s. he had a church in germany for awhile. this little church has been in financial difficulties and he's really been a fringe player in the gainesville christian community. but with his plan to burn the koran, he has found a way to get worldwide attention. at the sunday morning service at the dove world outreach center, there were fewer than 30 worshippers, a tiny congregation among the world's 2 billion-plus christians. but pastor terry jones has led his little flock to the brink of what has become a global confrontation. >> it's time to stand up and do what we're doing. >> reporter: pastor jones says he will go forward with his plan to burn hundreds of korans, the holy book of a more than a billion muslims on september 11th. pastor, don't

but minister terry jones says he is not backing down. >> our terry moran traveled to florida to speak to jones directly about this controversy. >> reporter: at the sunday morning service in the dove world outreach center, there were fewer than 30 worshipers. a tiny congregation among the world's 2 billion-plus christians. but pastor terry jones has led this little flock to the brink of what has become a global confrontation. >> it's time to stand up and do what we're doing. >> reporter: pastor jones says he will go forward with his plan to burn hundreds of korans, the holy book of more than 1 billion muslims, on september 11th. pastor, don't you even have a twinge of conscience about doing something like this? >> of course. of course. we have thought very much about it. we have prayed a lot about it. yes, it's one of the things that we think about all of the time. >> reporter: jones says the fbi, the department of justice and local law enforcement authorities in gainesville have all urged him not to go forward. but he won't listen. in afghanistan, general david petraeus warned that jo

everyone is condemning the plan by reverend terry jones, but jones says he's trying to send a message to radical islam. tara mergener is in washington with the latest on that. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning. jones believes radical islam could take over america and says burning the koran is a warning. secretary of state hillary clinton is just the latest official to lash out at pastor terry jones. >> i am heartened by the clear unequivocal condemnation of this disrespectful, disgraceful act. >> reporter: the florida preacher has sparked worldwide controversy over his plans to publicly burn the koran, the muslim holy book, on september 11th. >> we're dealing with the radical element of islam they have no problem burning the flag, burning the bible. >> reporter: outrage has already erupted in afghanistan and the top u.s. military general in the country, general david petraeus, fears american soldiers will end up paying the price. still, jones doesn't believe he should be held accountable. >> we're not pulling the trigger. we're not the one doing it. i think the finger sho

his name is terry jones. he's calling it international burn a koran day to commemorate the ninth anniversary of the attacks of 9/11. isn't it traditional on the 11th anniversary to burn leather or pottery? he says, terry said he's been praying on it. and this is terry jones, as you can see. and he also thought it would be a good idea to grow a hulk hogan mustache. set that on fire. most rational people are condemning this plan. the vatican, hillary clinton, the secretary of defense, general with trey us said it would put american troops at risk. but this guy terry jones, he told "the early show" he's moving ahead anyway. what happened to the good old days of burning your bra? that was fun. i'm not sure what his point is exactly or how this is going to help anything. but he's getting a lot of attention, which is obviously what he wants. i have an idea that could solve everything. at midnight, on september 10th, somebody, i don't know who, maybe bruce willis or somebody cool like that, sneaks into his church an

everyone is condemning the plan by reverend terry jones, but

they joined the chorus of voices condemning the plan by terry jones to burn the muslim holy book. the faith leaders are urging peace and tolerance to prevailed. >> i wish had hadn't happened. because it happened, if it actually is a sense to reach and reaffirm who we are. >> i think mr. terry jones is dividing rather than -- >> a celebration of diversity is planned tomorrow evening outside the santa clara county administration building. on the national level some political enemies are now joining forces to denounce the planned burning. >> pastor terry jones says his small florida congregation still plans to burn the karan this weekend, though it seems most of the world disagrees. >> we are not convinced that backing down is the right thing. >> sarah palin tweeted her opposition to jones. pat robinson criticized him on tv. >> this is so stupid. >> the f.b.i. says retaliation is likely and a state department ordered assessment of their security if jones goes ahead with his plan. >> we want to be judged by who we are as a nation, not something that is so aberrationnal and we'll make

>> couric: kelly, what else can you tell us about terry jones? >> reporter: well, he runs a very small evangelical church. he and his wife sell furniture on ebay out of the church. there were some questions about the propriety of that according to tax code. but as far as we can tell, he's never been charged with anything. katie? >> couric: all right. kelly cobiella in gainesville, florida tonight. kelly, thanks very much. in other news, it was one week ago that the u.s. mission in iraq officially changed from combat to training and supporting iraqi forces. but the violence there has continued and today it was an iraqi soldier opening fire on american service members at an iraqi army base north of baghdad. two u.s. soldiers were killed, nine others were wounded before the attacker was shot and killed. they're the first americans to die in what's now being called "operation new dawn." more than 4,400 have been killed in iraq since 2003. here at home, more evacuations are expected in colorado as a wildfire rages near boulder. the fire about 12 miles

. >> reporter: as pastor terry jones plans for the 9/11 anniversarbecomes public, in pakistan they burned the u.s. flag, the indonesia, the presidenwarns of an interfaith bklash. >> what is being planned by reverend terry jones and followers in florida, the united states of america, before the publics burn the holy koran, not only with the feelings of the islamic but i am also certain the feelings of the followers of other faiths can threaten peace and security. >> in the gaza strip, the hamas prime minister vowed allegiance to the koran and called pastor jones a criminal liar. in the u.s. clergy were quic to condemn the plans as well. >> i say shame on you. >> bearingwitness against your neighbor is against the koran and bibles. we have to be here. >> even president obama weighed in on the safety of the u.s. citizens abroad. >> ts stunt he is talking aboupulling could greatly endanger our young men in women in iraq and afghanistan. >> mission's experts say these kinds of events can be catastrophic for christians in muslim lands. >> christians arou the world will suffer. there is almost n

and some, like terry jones, are ready for the fight. you're prepared to do this and prepared and ready to incite violence? >> we are definitely prepared to do this. we are definitely prepared to give our lives for this particular message and cause, yes. >> will you be armed? >> yes, we will. mm-hmm. yes. >> so we could see a gun battle out here? >> we could. we have been threatened. >> reporter: jones says he's been asked directly by the fbi, the department of justice, and local gainesville law enforcement not to go through with the koran burning. but he won't listen. to them, at least. if you listen to him closely, though, you get the sense he may be looking, praying, for a way out of a terrible corner he's painted himself into. you're going to go through with this? >> as of right now, we have every intention in going through, yes. >> what would change your mind? >> yeah, i guess the same thing that caused us to do it. just a deep conviction from god that something has to happen. >> reporter: so he is praying. as are so many other peop

but so far, the criticism hasn't deterred pastor terry jones in the least. emily schmidt joins us with details. good morning, emery. >> reporter: good morning to you. two days from now, a pastor of a congregation that only has a couple dozen people, is planning an action in a the u.s. fears will have international backlash. so far, though, all of the warnings haven't led to my change. pastor terry jones says his small florida congregation, still plans to burn the koran this weekend. although, it seems most of the world disagrees. >> we are not convinced that backing down is the right thing. >> reporter: sarah palin tweeted her opposition to jones. televangelist, pat robertson, criticized him on tv. >> this is so stupid. >> reporter: the fbi says retaliation for koran burning is likely. and the state department ordered u.s. embassies to assess their security if jones goes ahead with his plan. >> we want to be judged by who we are as a nation. not by something that is so aberrational. and we'll make that case as strongly as possible. >> reporter: the burning i

a press release after the terry jones debacle saying that they were very upset because they burned a creamy year ago no one cared because even i had no idea even radical fundamentalists think they're crazy so i don't. given people really even consider them representative of anyone at this point ok well lets out we have one last clip to play here and they have some predictions for your future oh yes that's right. ok. ok you just you just took that away all right they lie usually i'm just trying to get to the next question and then they love to talk believe me they love the camera ards are you feeling a little damned are you feeling like you're going to go to hell for this i think if if they think i'm damned i'm probably pretty good. or now whatever videos have you die i mean aside from the westboro baptist who ask you like to go out there and poke fun at well the truth is for the most part when i've done these men in the street interviews it usually been with strangers say on hollywood boulevard or places like that where i'm just sort of poking fun at the news industry trying to ask g

terry jones would have been right at home in the medieval crusades. he missed his calling by about five centuries. he is an individual doing what any number of crackpot to could do. the fact that he has gone so much attention says something about us. >> general petraeus it is saying that this could cause harm. >> all of that is distressing. this reminds me of a little bit about those freak shows that we saw in the 1920's, except this one has the potential for damage. >> i think the president would have been chastised if this fellow went ahead and caused repercussions. i think for terry jones, my suggestion would be to give him his own show on the fox business channel and no one will ever hear from him again. >> i would have preferred to see a more definitive statement from the white house that recognize to we are as americans, want our freedom of speech rights are, but clearly condemned it, and then no more talk. all the comments coming later have only fed the beast. >> what about television? should we be ignoring this guy? >> something else we are no

pastor terry jones said he wanted to send a message to the radical islamists. the u.s. attorney general condemn the plans. our security correspondent has the latest. >> from an obscure church in florida comes a u.s. preacher with some inflammatory ideas. >> this is not a book of peace. this book is responsible for 9/11. >> terry jones decided the way to hit back is to insult all muslims by publicly burning the koran. the u.s. secretary of state has been quick to distance herself. >> it is regrettable a pastor with a church of no more than 50 people can make this an outrageous and disgraceful plan and get the world's attention. >> in rome, the vatican spoke out saying these deplorable acts of violence cannot be counteracted by an outrageous gesture against a book considered sacred by a religious community. world leach at -- world leaders are appalled. the european union and tony blair have all condemned it. pastor jones is defiant. he is determined to make a stand. >> as of right now we are not convinced that backing down is the right thing. on 9/11 we shall continue wit

pastor terry jones held a news conference to say a deal has been reached. jones says that it was a sign from god he had been waiting for that the imam in new york was willing to moist location of the mosque planned for ground zero. >> the imam agreed to move the mosque. we have agreed to cancel our event on saturday. and on saturday, i will be flying up there to meet with him. >> the imam, however, has said there is no deal that has been brokered and he's not about to barter over the location in new york. local muslims are grateful pastor jones is abandoning the plans for burning the koran on september 11th. >> whether there is a deal already existing or would happen, i hope everybody calms down. i hope everybody takes a high road. because... terry jones could not call himself a man of faith and threaten to do this. >> jones has been feeling pressure from many fronts, defense secretary robert gates called jones this afternoon expressing the concern for safety of u.s. troops if the burning took place. islamic extremists have been passing out leaflets around

pastor terry jones says he has more than 200 koran and he claims a message from god to pile them up and burn them saturday. >> it is by no means a stunt. we have thought this out. we have prayed this through. we believe that this type of message is right now very, very necessary in america before it's too late. >> reporter: the church's associate pastor -- >> it's a smith & wesson .40 caliber. >> reporter: -- says he's now armed after hundreds of e-mails from around the world flooded the church's in-box. messages like, swear by almighty god, i will slay the church pastor terry jones in front of the church's door. the dove world outreach center sits outside a cow pasture in rural gainesville, florida. the congregation here numbers less than 50. while this afternoon their leader said he is undeterred -- >> we have no intention of cancelling. >> reporter: -- pastor jones admits he's never read the koran but takes no responsibility if burning it leads to an attack on a u.s. soldier. >> of course we would feel terrible. we are not responsible for that. why don't we point the finger where it

they joined a chorus of voices condemning a plan by terry jones to burn the quran in florida on september 11th. they are urging peace and tolerance to prevail. >> i wish it hadn't happened. >> despite worldwide outrage and pressure, the pastor with a congregation of no more than 50 isn't backing down. >> as of this time, we have no intention of can selling. -- cancelling. >> they broadcast the muslim and arab news reports that are following the quran burning and debate about the ground zero mosque in new york. >> the tone of the reports has a big question. and the question is about questioning the rise of islam-aphobia in the united states. >> the international president ares include statements bisect of state hillary clinton and general david petraeus, calling the gainsville event disgraceful and dangerous to american troops. at least in the united states muslims say they are reassured by the response of the majority of americans. >> two days ago before all of these statements surfaced, we are all very scared, very nervous. it was very uncertain. >> today there was a promise that the sho

. >> officials urge reverend terry jones to cancel the karan burning. welcome news to many local muslim leaders. terry mcsweeney joins us now with more how local leaders are responding. >> yeah, local religious leaders calling on the reverend jones to not burn the karan but local muslims a bit shaken by this incident. leaders of faith groups got together in palo alto to urge peace and tolerance. one even had a suggestion that might have been successful had it been brought up a couple weeks ago that the world ignore the karan burning. too late for that. the scheduled event brought back the topic of islamic phobia and that puts muslims on edge before hillary clinton and david petraeus strongly and publicly denounced the book burning. >> two days ago before all these statements surfaced, we were all very scared, very nervous. it was very uncertain. >> those guys are digging in their heels. the reverend jones has no intention of backing down. local organizations say they have no intention backing down either and vowing to increase their show of solidarity.

jones and his ability to manipulate the media or -- >> let's really separate him almost from everyone else. he was condemned by everyone i can think of, from president obama to sarah palin to people of faith to secretary defense robert gates, general traits saying you're putting our men and women at risk. >> because of something you made up you claim god told you. >> and when these people, whether it's people stoning and killing women in the name of religion or terry jones in florida in the name of religion wanting to burn someone else's holy book, people using religion as a veil is that much more blasphemous and hypocritical. let's separate him from what the rest of the country, i think the country is becoming more educated with and surrounded by muslims. and people who practice islam because there's such a growing part of our society. and whenever something is new in society, people have growing pains. i think the mosque issue is a very particularlized account. and my muslim friend had e-mailed me from injure russ lem, she's there in the summer she was upset that the american media

but today florida pastor terry jones insisted he will go ahead with plans to burn copies of the koran on saturday to mark the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. in response, the state department ordered u.s. around the world to assess their security and brace for possible protests. general david petraeus, the top u.s. commander in afghanistan, met today with afghan president hamid karzai, both warned that jones' plan could endanger u.s. troops. and the vatican said "this act would only call for new hate and violence." kelly cobiella is in gainesville, florida tonight. kelly, pastor jones is getting lots of criticism from many corners but he's claiming a lot of people are actually on his side. >> he does say that, katie. and he says they're simply afraid to speak out publicly so he's determined to send a message for them. with the world watching and condemning him, pastor terry jones stood firm. >> we are not convinced that backing down is the right thing. >> reporter: yet there was one small sign the pastor-- who's never read the koran or visited a mosque-- was willing to hear fro

still, terry jones seems to have crossed a line. a line that is clear to so many christians, like pastor dan johnson of the trinity united methodist church in gainesville. >> from a christian standpoint, what's wrong with burning a koran? >> from a christian perspective, we are taught in our scriptures to honor, love, and respect other people. and treat them as we would want to be treated. >> reporter: but that vision of christianity is a far cry from what terry jones professes. terry moran, abc news. >>> the worst fire in state history is still raging near boulder, colorado. at least 135 homes have been destroyed and thousands of people are still evacuated. some of the evacuees may be allowed back later this morning. four people remain missing as some residents have stayed behind and risked their lives to try to save their homes. fire crews are dealing with downed power lines, debris, poison ivy and rattlesnakes as they battle the flames. >>> tropical storm hermine managed one last damaging gasp as it broke up and moved out of texa

you don't play games with that. >> reporter: and so, terry jones' plan to burn the koran tomorrow is off. but the damage has been done. he's benefited, though, no question about that. he's gained worldwide attention for his financially troubled little church here and gained a measure of celebrity, as well, and he plans, right now, to be in new york city for september 11th. diane? >> well, picking up on that very thing, terry, as you know, you're well aware, we've been wrestling with the question about this modern media nation. and so we asked david muir to take another look at whether all this attention just encourages incendiary approaches. >> reporter: so many of you have e-mailed us, asking, why have we paid so much attention to this lone pastor in florida? not just the media but the white house, cabinet secretaries and american general. "the media needs to step off," wrote one of you. "they are blowing this whole thing up and giving this nut bag in florida his moment of fame." even worse, some argue, it encourages others. >> it's really disturbing to think of what other copy cat

pastor terry jones made his way it to new york last night. he will join us here this morning for an exclusive interview. >>> also coming up, we will ask the question whethre is elizabe ann gil? she's just two years old when she disappeared from her front porch. her family refused to let the case die and how 45 years later the fbi has reopened the investigation. what made them reopen it? we'll find out. >>> also stand up to cancer. a one hour commercial free telecast aired on 17 networks last night including youtube. celebrities from george clooney to denzel washington and adam sandler took part in the event that is dedicated to the 12 million u.s. cancer survivors. >> and michael dug michael can appearance. a lot to get, to but first a check of the weather. >>> good saturday morning. a little chilly out here on the plaza. some from south dakota. you came from a long ways away, right? you have to get ready for your cold weather, too. let's talk about what's happening out around the country. the big fall chill moving in but a nice weekend. we'l

we've got an exclusive interview with pastor terry jones, as the controversy reaches a fever pitch. >>> rirising from the e ashes. after years of delays and controversy, we'll take a top to bottom tour of the ground zero site with the man in charge of the memorial that's taken nine years to construct. is it at long last finally close to being completed? >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with terry moran, cynthia mcfadden and bill weir in new york city, this is "nightline," september 9th, 2010. >>> good evening, i'm terry moran. breaking news tonight, and that's where we begin in san bruno, california in south san francisco. a towering fire is just burning out of control after a large gas main explosion. witnses on the scene report s visibly leaving the main and 35 to 45 homes are affected, as you can see there. and with uninterrupted supy of fuel the congression is moving unchecked on that neighborhood at that time. the number of casualties unclear. san francisco general hospital and other facilities are admitting burn victims, as authorities race to clear homes ahe

who is terry jones? in fact, yes felt his targeting yourself when he ran for mayor? >> that is correct. terry jones is the pastor of a church, that iwhat you wish to call it under such circumstances, that is very small and is a fringe group in gainesville, not someone who is representative of our community in the least. gainesville is a community that values every person regardless of their religion, race, gender, national origin, sex orientation or their language at birth. we're a community seeks for everyone to contribute to our community are welcome as contributions from everyone in our community and we wisho protect -- project that image to the world and not what we see on cnn and other networks with regard to this very unfortunate series of events. >> your the first openly gay mayor of gainesville and that is why he attacked you? >> that is correct. that was the basis for his attacks. >> ziad ghanimi, tell us what you're doing, with the gainesville initiative is and what you been doing a preparation for the quran burning on saturday. a >> the initiative was form

the florida pastor terry jones says he is not going to back down from plans to burn at least 100 copies of the koran on saturday. that will be september 11, marking nine years since the terror attacks in new york and washington. the koran is islam's holy text and many are concerned a koran burning could prompt threats around the world. jones has some obstacles ahead. the city of gainesville denied him a burn permit. he also says the provider of his church's website has cut off his access to it. >> we feel that is an indirect, of course, violation of our freedom of expression, freedom of speech, because they are trying to shut us down. >> some people in gainesville held their own interfaith service last night. organizers say their turnout outnumbered the 50 members of the jones' church. >>> 75 of the most influential people in silicon valley are urging major league baseball to let oakland as move to san jose. ceos from cisco systems, ebay, yahoo, sun power and other companies signed a two-page letter of solidarity. it urges baseball commissioner bud selig to let as and the city move forw

the florida pastor, terry jones, faced the cameras today to say he will not burn the koran in o6 two days on the 9/11 anniversary. but he also said that he had worked out a deal that the mosque planned near ground zero would be moved. but the imam of the mosque told abc news he knows nothing of such a deal, and now the pastor has reappeared before the microphones again. we're going to tell you the whole story of this afternoon. and our christiane amanpour was with the imam of the mosque, exclusively. she'll be reporting in. jon karl is in washington. and matt gutman is in gainesville, florida, where the pastor resides. let's begin with christiane amanpour. tell us what happened. >> reporter: well, diane, i just spent the last several hours with imam feisal abdul rauf of the islamic center here in manhattan. i was interviewing him when pastor jones made that statement from florida. and, he shook his head in bewilderment and gave a statement to me in which he said, "i am glad that pastor jones has decided not to burn any korans. however, i have not spoken with pastor jones or imam musr

an effigy of pastor terry jones from the tiny florida church was lit on fire. the protesters well aware of the pastor's inflammatory comments. >> islam is an evil religion. >> reporter: but anger has spread far beyond pastor jones with chants of death to america echoing through the crowd. minutes later rocks were hurled at a passing u.s. military convoy. the u.s. commander in afghanistan, general david petraeus, is outraged by the threat to burn the koran saying in a statement tonight that it could "endanger troops, and it could endanger the overall effort here." we spoke tonight in kabul with the former vice chief of staff of the army, general jack keane. >> it is outrageous and it is insulting to muslims, but it's also insulting to our soldiers in terms of what they stand for and what their commitment is to this country and to the muslims in this country. >> reporter: late today pastor terry jones vowed he would go ahead with the koran burning. >> what we are doing is long overdue. we are revealing again the violence of islam that is much, much deeper than we

---el pastor "terry jones" había cancelado su protesta porque, segun dijo, el líder de un centro islámico accedio a que no se construyera un nuevo templo musulman cerca del sitio donde ocurrieron los atentados en nueva york... pero el imán del templo musulman niega haber llegado a tal acuerdo, por lo que ahora "jones" seguirá adelante con su plan original.---varios lideres politicos y religiosos le piden a "jones" que reconsidere sus planes, porque quemar el "coran" pondría en riesgo a los soldados de estados unidos y proporcionaría una herramienta de reclutamiento para los extremistas islámicos. ---la administracion federal de aviacion esta a punto de revelar una serie de reglas para regular el numero de horas que pueden trabajar los pilotos.---la idea es evitar que los pilotos cometan errores mortales, como el accidente que ocurrio en nueva york el 12 de febrero del aÑo pasado que le cobro la vida a 50 personas.---la agencia federal de aviacion tardo mas de 15 meses en desarrollar las nuevas pautas, a pesar de que prometieron adoptar cambios de inmediato despues del accidente.---s

terry jones came here to potentially meet with the imam, as far as we know there has been no meeting that's been set as of yet. is it the white house's responsibility to facilitate a meeting between the two at any point? >> i can't see any reason why there should be a meeting between the two. i think one doesn't have anything to do with the other. i mean, it can be sort of conflated neatly. i don't see why pastor jones has any sort of for rum or platform worthy of discussion. you know, he seems rather ignorant about what his complaints about islam are. i don't think that's where the discourse ought to be. if there's going to be discourse it would seem to me it would make sense it happens in new york, as a community that's dealing with what should go where and how that should move forward. i don't think the pastor has any role in that and i don't think the white house wants to broker anything. >> the country has been so focused on this issue and the mosque as well, the president's economic issue has been overlooked. the same thing this summer the economic message gets overlooked becau

jones amenazo con quemar ejemplares del coran------en las ultimas horas jones ha dicho que no lo hara ante las reacciones que se ha provocado y con la esperanza de que no se construya una mezquita cerca de la zona cero--- ---el presidente barak obama ha dado su segunda conferencia de prensa en 15 meses y en ella mostro a un mandatario irritado, enojado y molesto como se le trata--- trata------dijo que los problemas economicos son heredados y volvio a acusar a la oposicion de tratarlo como un perro------la molestia de obama parace centrarse en los comentarios negativos que recibe su administracion, cuando segun el la tendencia economica iba en declive cuando asumio el mando--- ---vamos a hacer la primera pausa en el noticiero y regresamos con sus llamadas y opiniones... ---y fidel habla nuevamente sobre sus declaraciones sobre el comunismo en cuba... y ahora...¿que tendra que decir?... y algo mas... que tienen que decir los simpsons al respecto... que dicen que son adivinos. adivinos. en noticiero telemundo 48 a las seis, tu voz en la comunidad= ---seguimos en noticiero telemundo 48 c

. >>> hundreds of korans set to be burned in pastor terry jones 9/11 stunt in florida will soon be serving a new purpose in our area. where everywhere at 11. patrick mahoney has selected 225 of those korans and will distribute them to christian churches as a tool of interface dialogue. he says he has spoken with several muslim leaders. the action is mixed but all are grateful they will not be burned. >> scary moments for dozens of passengers aboard a flight from new york state to atlanta. the plane had to make an emergency landing at jfk airport after the landing gear apparently malfunctioned. federal transportation officials are now investigating. >>> new controversy surrounding the abortion pill. opponents are considering using tele medicine to make it more available. a doctor could administer the pill to a woman after consultations via the internet. it makes getting an abortion too easy and poses a health risk because it does not include a face-to-face meeting. tele medicine is a growing trend for patients in areas with little access to doctors. >>> federal former air force officials ar

florida pastor terry jones landed in new york city with the hopes of meeting the imam of the planned community center after the pastor's son insisted that their plans to burn korans is off. >> there will be no koran burning tomorrow. i don't know. do we have to repeat that over and over and over again? >> president obama had pointed words for jones at a press conference this morning. >> this is a way of endangering our troops, our sons and daughters. >> so we ask you tonight what's the best outcome to this whole koran burning controversy? should the imam at the islamic community center meet with jones? give him the time of day or at this point would it be better if the pastor just went home? tell us what you think at the "nightline" facebook page or "nightline" page at abcnews.com and that is our report for this friday as we pass midnight here in new york and enter the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, the towers of lights are back downtown and our thoughts are with the fallen and all who love them. good night, america. jessica stroup i'm, dax shepard is here and jessica stroup

his name is terry jones. he's been condemned by pretty much everyone. president obama said what he's doing goes against american values. general petraeus said it could threaten american troops. al gore is upset about the carbon emissions from burning the -- would like the pastor to microwave it instead. even glenn beck and sarah palin spoke out against him. and then tonight he called the burning off because he said he made a deal with an imam, which is a muslim leader, who said that if he agreed to call off the burning, they would agree not to build that mosque near ground zero in new york. >> we have or he has been in contact with the imam in new york city. imam but continue. >> with the iman here, i will be flying up there on saturday to meet with the iman at the ground zero mosque. the iman has agreed to move the mosque. >> jimmy: just to be clear, this is the imam, okay? and this is iman. she's a model. i think she's married to david bowie. the imam isn't. okay? and then to make it even better, the imam says he made no such promise, he doesn't even

. >>>-- reverend terry jones says he agreed to cancel saturday's koran burning after he was told that the site of a mosque near ground zero would be moved. the controversy could potentially do more damage to u.s. relations to the islamic war than what happened in abu prison in iraq. >> even though this burning does not happen, the damage is done. >> reporter: president obama went on television to urge pastor jones not to burn the islam's most holy book. >>> its sounds like yet another massive cost overrun. the extra money was already part of the plan. tom vacar is live on treasure island to explain. tom-- >> reporter: five years ago, the legislature concerned about constant cost overruns put away some money for a rainy day. in three years and three months, the long awaited span of the bay bridge is awaited to open. the cost, $6.3 billion. >> a strong bridge that is seismic retrofitted, is going to pay itself over and over and over. >> reporter: this is the most custom job. the sections that will join the signature tower and its suspended road bridge are so complicated and will bear so