Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – The Medan branch of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has condemned a blog it claims goes under the guise of Islam but is in fact misleading and insults Islam.

The blog, titled Berita Muslim Sahih (True Muslim News) and written in Indonesian, can be found at beritamuslim.wordpress.com. It first appeared in April 2009. Most of the articles in the blog are believed to be written by contributors.

Medan MUI head Mohammad Hatta said the blog was insulting to Islam. He called on the government to immediately shut down the website and launch an investigation into its creators. "The website creators should be arrested," Hatta said Tuesday.

An entry in the website reads "Allah is not a true god. He is a fictitious figure made up by an evil Arabian psychopath who was a self-proclaimed prophet".

Hatta said similar sites were mushrooming on the Internet. Two months ago, the Medan MUI also filed a complaint against the ayotindak.com website, which they claimed hosted articles insulting Muslims.

The MUI said the website hurt religious harmony, particularly for Muslims, due to the offensive articles. "I'm sad that Islam has been the target of offense through the Internet. Such actions are unethical and the motives of the perpetrators must be investigated," Hatta said.

He added that the website had caused public unrest, especially among Muslims, saying the articles were misleading and even went so far as to insult God and the Prophet Muhammad. He called on the Communications and Information Technology Ministry to look into the matter.

Medan Denai resident Abdika said he often accessed the Berita Muslim Sahih website and added that the website should be blocked, saying the content was misleading and derogatory toward Muslims.