The Pentagon warned on Tuesday against feeding into Islamic State's narrative that the United States was at war with Islam, in comments that indirectly criticized remarks by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
"Anything that bolsters ISIL’s narrative and pits the United States against the Muslim faith is certainly not only contrary to our values but contrary to our national security," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told a news briefing, using an acronym for Islamic State.
Trump, the Republican front-runner for the November 2016 presidential election, has proposed banning Muslims from entering the United States.
(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Yeganeh Torbati; Editing by Mohammad Zargham)