The Prime Minister's Office today said the kafir harbi statement by Pahang mufti Abdul Rahman Osman was merely an opinion but claimed it became controversial after being distorted by certain quarters.

"The cabinet is of the view that the statement made by the Pahang mufti about the term kafir harbi which was widely circulated in the media was only an opinion.

"The Pahang mufti's actual statement meant that kafir harbi must be opposed (ditentangi) instead of waged war (diperangi) against.

"The issue generated controversy because there were quarters that tried to distort his statement (menyeleweng kenyataan) by using the term 'waged war'," it said in a statement today.

The PMO added that the Pahang mufti's comment was also not a religious edict.

"This is because an official fatwa must go through the fatwa council," it said.

As such, the PMO said the government urged that any views concerning the term kafir harbi should be properly scrutinised so as not to cause unease in society, particularly among non-Muslims.

"The government hopes that this statement (by the PMO) can put the people's restlessness at ease, particularly among non-Muslims in the interest of safeguarding harmony and national security in line with the principles of maqasid syariah," it said.

Last week, Abdul Rahman was quoted by Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia as labelling DAP as kafir harbi.

He was commenting on DAP's objection to hudud in the country.

Abdul Rahman later clarified that he was not only referring to DAP, but all non-Muslims in general who opposed Islam.