KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 11): Muslims who resort to acts of terror to express their anger over the injustices done to Palestinians should realise that they achieve nothing by killing innocent people, says Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

"They should instead try to win the sympathy of the world for the Palestinian people," he said at the launching of the colloquium on "Demystifying Islamophobia" organised by the Institute of Islamic Understanding (IKIM).

To address Islamophobia, he said, it is important to understand why Muslims are angry, because if the roots of the problem are not recognised, acts of terror may get worse.

Mahathir said that the term "Islamophobia" was coined following the reaction of Muslims to the suffering of the Palestinian people with the creation of Israel.

He said that the creation of Israel out of the land of the Palestinians was recognised by the UN although it did not follow the democratic process and was done without a plebiscite.

The world did nothing but watched, he said, including when Israel occupied Palestinian territory in breach of international laws.