London, England - A Saudi-funded Islamic school in London at the centre of a media storm over textbooks containing offensive references to Judaism and Christianity said on Wednesday it had removed controversial chapters.
A teacher, who is taking action against the King Fahd Academy in west London after being sacked, provoked the row after he told a newspaper pupils were taught to hate non-Muslims and that some had been heard praising Osama bin Laden.
"The allegations made by a disgruntled ex-employee are grossly offensive, highly inflammatory and entirely without foundation," said Sumaya Alyusuf, the school's director.
Britain's Muslims have been in the spotlight since four British Islamists carried out suicide bombings on London's transport system in July 2005, killing 52 passengers.
Some commentators have accused Muslim organisations of not doing enough to counter extremism or even encouraging it, while many Islamic groups feel they have been unfairly targeted, particularly by the media, for the actions of a minority.
The teacher, who is suing the school for unfair dismissal, sparked the latest furore by saying the academy used a textbook about the Koran which made racist remarks.
An early Islamic scholar was quoted in the book as saying: "The monkeys are the Jews and the pigs are the Christian infidels at Jesus's table".
Alyusuf said the controversial chapters had never been taught at the school and that the quote was based on a mis-translation which only appeared as an explanatory footnote.
However she said the offending pages had now been cut out of the textbooks and she had informed the Saudi Department of Education of the decision.
"I would like to make it clear that controversial pages within the books are not taught within the academy," she said, adding the sacked teacher had worked at the school for 19 years and both his daughters had attended.
"He never came up with any of this before. Why did he leave his daughters in this school?"
Alyusuf invited reporters to look round the school on Wednesday, showing off work which demonstrated its multi-faith approach.
Pupils themselves said they felt unhappy with the image that had been portrayed in the media.
"I have never learnt anything about terrorism," one teenage boy told the reporters. "I don't have any hatred to any other culture: they have their own religion and I have my own religion."
"Islam teaches us to respect all other religions," another said.
Alyusuf, who said pupils had been subjected to "animosity" since the row erupted, said the school had been approached by the local members of parliament and the police about stepping up security.