DR. ZAKIR NAIK, probably the most famous Muslim preacher in the world who has enthralled millions of Muslims and non-Muslims with his tireless efforts to spread the message of Islam, is not in need of "internationally renowned" media outlets to "define" him. We know who he is. Period.

His nearly two decades of dedication to Islamic education, of which what the public mostly knows are his remarkable speeches and well-reasoned Q&A, have left an unparalleled legacy. Young and old, men and women, are so addicted to him that they have memorized his statements, his rationale, his arguments, his quotations, and in fact his entire lectures.

And here comes a concerted deception, a deliberate insult, and a pathetic slander by the world's most "prominent" and "journalistically-distinguished" mainstream media.

Dr. Zakir Naik, as we know, has been banned from the UK for, what the media said, hate speech. He after all said, "Every Muslim should be a terrorist," which prompted the tough, new UK Home Secretary, Theresa May, to "exclude" him.

Islamic Research Foundation (IRF), founded by Dr. Naik, responded to the allegations on June 18. It provided fuller quotes and the context in which they were said, all of which only points to the ingenuity and justice of Dr. Naik. Here is a fuller, unedited quote of the statement:

"As far as terrorist is concerned, I tell the Muslims that every Muslim should be a terrorist... What is the meaning of the word terrorist? Terrorist by definition means a person who terrorizes. When a robber sees a policeman he's terrified. So for a robber, a policeman is a terrorist. So in this context every Muslim should be a terrorist to the robber... Every Muslim should be a terrorist to each and every antisocial element. I'm aware that terrorist more commonly is used for a person who terrorizes an innocent person. In this context, no Muslim should even terrorize a single innocent human being. The Muslims should selectively terrorize the antisocial element..."

The second quote that was used was as following from a hashed up YouTube video:

"Beware of Muslims saying Osama Bin Laden is right or wrong, I reject them... we don't know. But if you ask my view, if given the truth, if he is fighting the enemies of Islam, I am for him. I don't know what he's doing. I'm not in touch with him. I don't know him personally. I read the newspaper. If he is terrorizing the terrorist, if he is terrorizing America the terrorist, the biggest terrorist, he's following Islam."

IRF clarified:

"Many journalists ask Dr. Zakir Naik regarding his views about Osama Bin Laden. Due to the fact that he (Osama Bin Laden) has not been convicted in respect of 9/11 and as Dr. Zakir Naik cannot verify the claims against him, he neither considers him a saint nor a terrorist.
"There is not a single statement of Dr. Zakir Naik after 9/11 in which he has praised Osama Bin Laden or supported his activities.
"With regards to the extract of a quote on Osama Bin Laden taken from a video on YouTube, this clip was taken from a lecture Dr. Zakir Naik delivered in Singapore in 1996, almost five years before 9/11 and not in 2006, as has been posted.
It is therefore not possible to link this quote to Osama Bin Laden in the context of the 9/11, when the atrocity had not taken place; and took place after almost 5 years in 2001.
"The lecture was recorded by some local people (in Singapore) and was later edited and uploaded on You Tube by a prejudiced group. Unless and until we have the rushes (original unedited tapes) of the program, it is not possible to know which portions of the lecture have been edited.
"It is therefore not reasonable, in the light of Dr. Zakir Naik's known views about 9/11 and all other atrocities such as 7/7 (London, UK) and 7/11 (serial train bomb blast in Mumbai, India) to link these manipulated and very old comments to recent world events.
"Dr. Zakir Naik has emphatically and regularly condemned any and all persons responsible for these appalling atrocities, killing innocent civilians."

Zakir Naik's lecture on Jihad and Terrorism that he frequently gave after 9/11 is so famous that millions of people (yes, millions!) have heard it multiple times around the world. His condemnation of all terrorist acts is clear and well-known. It is impossible that anyone who has heard Naik will escape it because a question on terrorism props up in almost every public lecture, regardless of the topic he is speaking on.

Actually, it takes a courageous man to stand up to his principles and say that without trial and conviction one cannot say for sure if Bin Laden was really behind 9/11. This doesn't mean he supports Bin Laden or Al-Qaeda. Dr. Naik has severely condemned 9/11 attacks and has repeated thousands of times what the position of Islam is on killing an innocent life and saving an innocent life. He has been vocal against Al-Qaeda's ideology of terrorism and suicide bombing.

Of course, it didn't occur to Theresa or the media that we, the people, aren't brainless maggots. Had they thought we had some intelligence they wouldn't have deliberated this bold lie on purpose. No sir! Ignorance or naïveté cannot be applied to them. They – the present UK government and the media – must have known his statements fully well and yet consciously chose to pick words out of context and malign him to create a controversy that further alienates the Muslim community by spreading fear, division and confusion.

Dr. Zakir Abdul Kareem Naik – who lectures on topics like "Similarities between Islam and Christianity" and who runs a channel called "Peace TV" and who holds an annual convention in India titled "Peace Conference" – is not a spreader of hate. He has brought communities together, carried forward the message of Islam and dispelled misconceptions about this great religion from the minds of countless non-Muslims around the world.

Don't take my word for it. His full-length speeches will testify.