The alleged gunman in the Fort Hood shooting was a devout Muslim and there are reports he had complained about being deployed to fight fellow Muslims.  But Muslim leaders are trying to separate his actions from his faith.  

Quad City Muslims are reacting the same way most of the non-Muslim community is.  They're shocked, outraged, and mostly, they're sad. "It's a deplorable act."  That was Farah Khan's first reaction to news of the shooting. The Bettendorf woman's second reaction: "This cannot be an Islamic act."

Khan, a member of the Muslim Community Of The Quad Cities says, "Islam does not permit killing of innocent people. A person who claims that he has been doing that in the name of Islam, being a follower of that religion, those are two contradictory things."

Khan says Thursday's shooting and the suspect's ties to the Muslim world only add to a stereotype Muslims don't deserve. "We are always under pressure to defend ourselves and our religion and our faith. I think the hardest was after 9/11, but most of the people who had those questions, they did come to the mosque or Islamic center and clarified all their doubts."

Doubts Khan says are fueled by ignorance. "That's the most misunderstood religion in the world.  The Islam they heard from the media was very different from what they got to know from us."

Khan says the Muslim Community Of The Quad Cities works hard to reach out to other members of the community, especially by taking part in interfaith programs aimed at education. She says no religion should be judged based on the actions of one of its misguided followers. "God knows what his real intention, real faith was. But then to generalize it and label the entire community as such, it's unfortunate and frustrating."

Khan says the Muslim Community Of The Quad Cities is always open to questions and criticism. She says if you want to learn more about Islam, or its followers, their doors are open 24/7.