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 Obama said there was a complicated history between the Middle East
and the West and no one should be immune from criticism over
specific policies.
"But the notion that the West is at war with Islam is an ugly lie,"
he said. "And all of us, regardless of our faith, have a
responsibility to reject it," he told a conference convened by the
White House on countering violent extremism.
"Muslim communities, including scholars and clerics, therefore have
a responsibility to push back not just on twisted interpretations of
Islam, but also on the lie that we are somehow engaged in a clash of
civilizations," Obama said.
With violent groups like Islamic State and Boko Haram gaining
strength in parts of Africa and the Middle East, more than 60
countries and international organizations pledged after the
three-day summit in Washington to step up efforts to tackle "violent
extremism in all its forms."
They also agreed that military force and intelligence gathering
could not solve the problem of increased violent extremism, and they
underscored the need to promote tolerance and peace.
 Obama announced that the United States would join the United Arab
Emirates to create a new digital communications hub to work with
religious and community leaders to counter "terrorist propaganda"
and urged others to join the effort.
Political critics have accused the White House of shying away from
tying extremism to the religion of Islam after the recent attacks
staged by Islamist militants in Paris and Copenhagen.
Addressing the conference, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said
he would convene a meeting in coming months of faith leaders from
around the world and warned that violent extremism posed a grave
threat to international peace and security.
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"Military operations are crucial to confront real threats. But
bullets are not the 'silver bullet,'" Ban said. "Missiles may kill
terrorists. But good governance kills terrorism."
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said it was important to address
social and economic inequality that militants use to recruit.
"You have to do everything. You have to take the people off the
battlefield, who are there today," Kerry said. "But you’re kind of
stupid if all you do is do that, and you don’t prevent more people
from going to the battlefield," he added.
Nick Rasmussen, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, a
U.S. spy agency, said the threat of Islamist militants was
constantly changing and the United States and its allies faced "more
frequent low-level attacks against all of us."
Islamic State has demonstrated an "agile and highly capable use of
social media," Rasmussen said. The group's messaging has included
both horrifying videos of executions and more enticing images of
Islamic State fighters and their families, he said.
(Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton; Editing by Tom Brown and
Cynthia Osterman)
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