GOD 'PUT BUSH IN CHARGE'

  The Chosen One? Bush has tried not to demonise Islam
GOD 'PUT BUSH IN CHARGE'God has chosen US President George Bush to lead the United States and the fight against 'Satan', according to the general leading the hunt for Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.

It is alleged Lt Gen William Boykin also claimed that the Christian God is "bigger" than Allah, who is a false "idol", the Daily Telegraph reported.


The controversial comments will be seized on by Muslims who will claim the 'war on terror' is a crusade against Islam.

Beliefs

Mr Bush, who is also a practising Christian, has insisted that the hunt for terrorists is not defined by religion and that he does not oppose Islam.

Gen Boykin, a 13-year member of Delta Force, was promoted this summer and is responsible for speeding the flow of top-secret intelligence to commandos hunting bin Laden and the former Iraqi leader

Investigative reporters from the Los Angeles Times and NBC television claimed Gen Boykin had repeatedly told Christian groups and prayer meetings that President George Bush was chosen by God to lead the global fight against Satan.

'My God is bigger'

He is alleged to have told one gathering: "Why is this man in the White House? The majority of Americans did not vote for him. He's in the White House because God put him there for a time such as this."

In January, it is reported he told Baptists in Florida about a victory over a Muslim warlord in Somalia, who had boasted that Allah would protect him from American capture.

"I knew my God was bigger than his. I knew that my God was a real god and his was an idol," Gen Boykin is reported to have said.

Several key members of Mr Bush's administration, including the president, are Christian conservatives.

Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said the General's comments were made "in his private capacity".