File photo of Ashraf Ghani
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said Tuesday that Europe had helped to create Islamic civilisation and denounced the "savages" who carry out terrorist attacks in the name of the religion.
"As a freely elected Muslim leader I say that we leaders of the Muslim world have a responsibility to speak for true Islam," Ghani said after meeting Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in Rome.
"These savages have nothing to do with our sacred religion, with our great civilization."
Ghani added: "After all you remember, the first map of the world was done by the geographer Idrisi. That is the true civilisation of Islam, not knowing boundaries.
"Islam was produced in Spain, Italy and across the world ..."
Ghani was referring to Mohamed Al-Idrisi, a 12th Century geographer who drew up what is considered to be the first map of the world for Sicily's Norman king, Roger II.