Muslims like Obama tone, want action to back it up

Muslims around the world — even radical groups such as Hamas — praised President Barack Obama's address Thursday as a positive shift in U.S. attitude and tone. But Arabs and Muslims of all political stripes said they want him to turn his words into action — particularly in standing up to Israel.

Obama impressed Muslims with his humility and respect, and they were thrilled by his citing of Quranic verses. Aiming to repair ties with the Muslim world that had been strained under his predecessor George W. Bush, he opened with the traditional Arabic greeting "Assalamu Aleikum," which drew enthusiastic applause from his audience at Cairo University.

Even some extremist Web sites, which have carried statements from al-Qaida in the past, gave rare praise for Obama by calling him a "wise enemy." One posting on a chat room expressed admiration for Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton "wearing a head scarf … and she and Obama taking off their shoes" during a visit to Cairo's Sultan Hassan mosque.

Mohammed Zakarneh, a 33-year-old former fugitive militant in the West Bank town of Jenin, said Obama's speech "planted seeds of hope in our hearts, as Arabs and Muslims."

In the U.S., Muslim cabbies huddled over tea at a tiny cafe as day broke over Chicago, watching Obama's televised address from Egypt and nodding approval for what they saw.

"A single speech is not going to make things better, it takes time," said Syed Mehdi, a manager at the Flaming Wok'n Grill on the city's north side. "He's trying to build bridges. He's trying to be the cure to the damage and wounds that happened after 9/11."

"I think he won hearts and minds in the Muslim world today," said Salam al-Marayati, executive director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council in Los Angeles.

Few criticized the address, though some said the president didn't offer enough specifics on his plan for Mideast peace and fell short on addressing the everyday concerns of Muslims, whose U.S. population Obama estimated at nearly 7 million. Others offered skepticism about the impact of words alone.

"This infatuation exercise with this black president of the United States who's speaking about Islam will have a certain life cycle," said Shakeel Syed, executive director of the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California. "But before that life cycle has dissipated, I think some concrete policies need to be laid out."