His Majesty King Abdullah last night left for Indonesia on the first leg of a three-day tour that will also take him to Malaysia and Pakistan.

During his trip, King Abdullah will seek to rally support for a campaign he launched to defend Islam against extremism and terrorism practised in the name of religion, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The King is to meet with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhyono, Malaysian King Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin and his Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as well as Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.

In an interview with Al Rai newspaper earlier this week, the King said: “We will proceed with our efforts to defend Islam through upcoming meetings with several leaders of the Muslim world during a tour of a number of Muslim countries including Indonesia, Malaysia and Pakistan. I will encourage the heads of these states to join this campaign to defend our true faith.”

According to Petra, the King will also brief the Muslim leaders on the outcome of his last month's meetings with Pope Benedict XVI in Rome and leaders of the three monotheistic religions in the US.

The King will highlight the support these leaders showed for Jordan's efforts to launch dialogue between the three religions and extend bridges of understanding between different cultures, the agency said.

The King will also point out Jordan's success in holding the July international Islamic conference, in which participants, who represented the eight schools of Islamic jurisprudence, stressed the need for unifying fatwas (religious edicts) and rejecting any attempt to take advantage of Islam to justify terrorism.

The King will also discuss Jordan's bilateral ties with Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur and Islamabad.

In addition, the meetings will focus on ways to strengthen inter-Islamic relations and unify the Muslim world's stand on issues of common concern.

The Jordanian delegation comprises King's Personal Envoy and Special Adviser HRH Prince Ghazi, Royal Court Chief Faisal Fayez, Deputy Director of National Security and acting Director of King's Office Marouf Bakhit and Foreign Minister Farouq Qasrawi.

HRH Prince Feisal was sworn in as Regent.

The Jordan Times