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Plans by a Florida church to burn the Koran on the anniversary of 9/11 fueled fears Tuesday of a backlash which could endanger troops in Afghanistan, as US officials also sought to stem a wave of anti-Islam sentiment.

The White House added its voice to growing concern from military leaders that the incendiary move by a group of American evangelicals could trigger outrage around the Islamic world.

"It puts our troops in harm's way. Any type of activity like that that puts our troops in harm's way would be a concern to this administration," said White House spokesman Robert Gibbs.

He was reiterating comments by top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus, who warned burning the holy book of Islam would provide propaganda for insurgents.

"It could endanger troops and it could endanger the overall effort," Petraeus told the Wall Street Journal.

A small Florida church has vowed to mark Saturday's anniversary of the September 11, 2001 Al-Qaeda attacks and remember the deaths of the almost 3,000 people who were killed by burning a Koran.

Pastor Terry Jones said the Koran torching aimed "to remember those who were brutally murdered on September 11," and to send a warning "to the radical element of Islam."

But the move comes against a backdrop of "Islamophobia" driven by plans to build an Islamic cultural center in New York close to Ground Zero, the site where the World Trade Center stood before it was destroyed in the 2001 attacks.

US Attorney General Eric Holder was meeting religious leaders Tuesday to discuss ways of stemming the anti-Islam tide, with calls from the broad coalition of faiths to make a strong speech condemning hate crimes.

Saturday's anniversary is also set to coincide with the festivities for the Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.

US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley insisted freedom of religion was a pillar of American society, adding "the potential act of burning a Koran... is contrary to our values, contrary to how civil society has emerged in the country."

NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen also warned during a visit to Washington "there is a risk that it may also have a negative impact on security for our troops."

But Jones, who heads the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville Florida, remained defiant, saying his group was taking Petraeus's words seriously, but "we have firmly made up our mind" to go ahead.

"Instead of us being blamed for what other people will do or might do, why don't we send a warning to them? Why don't we send a warning to radical Islam and say, don't do it. If you attack us, if you attack us, we will attack you," he said.

Al-Qaeda militants plowed two hijacked commercial airlines into the World Trade Center in New York on September 11, 2001, destroying the twin towers and raining terror on the city.

Another plane was flown into the Pentagon outside Washington, while a fourth crashed into a Pennsylvania field after passengers overpowered the hijackers.

"Having spoken to many families across the country over the last few weeks, I have heard many Muslim Americans say they have never felt this anxious or this insecure in America since directly after September 11," Ingrid Mattson, head of the Islamic Society of North America, told a press conference.

The press conference was called by the coalition of religious leaders who were meeting with Holder.

"To those who would exercise derision... bigotry, open rejection of our fellow Americans for their religious faith, I say shame on you," said Richard Cizik, one of the country's most prominent evangelical leaders.

"We are profoundly distressed and deeply saddened by the incidents of violence committed against Muslims in our communities. And by the desecration of Islamic houses of worship," added Rabbi Nancy Kreimer.

There have already been protests in the Afghan capital Kabul and in Indonesia -- the world's largest Muslim-majority country -- against the provocative plans to burn a Koran.

And Iran has warned it could unleash an uncontrolled Muslim response.

The Vatican newspaper, l'Osservatore Romano, in a commentary Tuesday condemned the plans in an article "No-one should burn the Koran."

"We condemn this plan and this campaign which is contrary to the respect which should be given to all Muslims," said John Saldanha, archbishop of the Pakistani city of Lahore.

AFP