New York, NY, November 18, 2010 … The Interfaith Coalition on Mosques (ICOM) today welcomed the decision of a Murfreesboro, Tenn., judge that turned back a meritless attempt to block the construction of a mosque.

Chancellor Robert Corlew III rejected claims that the city planning commission had acted inappropriately in granting the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro permission to build a mosque just outside of the city. 

"Although the trial had appeared at points to have devolved into a forum for the airing of the anti-Muslim statements, the judge properly and explicitly rejected the anti-Muslim rhetoric in his ruling," the Interfaith Coalition said in a statement.

Arguing on behalf of ICOM that the lawsuit was meritless, the Anti-Defamation League filed a brief in September reminding the court that the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) safeguarded the right of this mosque to be built.  The case is Estes v. Rutherford County Regional Planning Commission.

The Interfaith Coalition on Mosques was formed in early September to assist those Muslim communities confronting opposition to the legal building, expansion or relocation of their mosques.  The coalition is comprised of prominent individuals and organizations from different faith traditions – Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical, Muslim and Jewish.