GAINESVILLE, Fla. • The government turned up the pressure Tuesday on the head of a small Florida church who plans to burn copies of the Quran on Sept. 11, warning him that doing so could endanger U.S. troops and Americans everywhere.

But the Rev. Terry Jones insisted he would go ahead with his plan, despite criticism from the top U.S. general in Afghanistan, the White House and the State Department, as well as a host of religious leaders.

Jones, who is known for posting signs proclaiming that Islam is the devil's religion, says the Constitution gives him the right to publicly set fire to the book that Muslims consider the word of God.

Gen. David Petraeus warned Tuesday in an e-mail to The Associated Press that "images of the burning of a Quran would undoubtedly be used by extremists in Afghanistan — and around the world — to inflame public opinion and incite violence." It was a rare example of a military commander's taking a position on a domestic political matter.

Jones responded that he was also concerned but was "wondering, 'When do we stop?'" He refused to cancel the protest set for Saturday at his Dove World Outreach Center, a church that espouses an anti-Islam philosophy.

"How much do we back down? How many times do we back down?" Jones said. "Instead of us backing down, maybe it's to time to stand up. Maybe it's time to send a message to radical Islam that we will not tolerate their behavior."

Still, Jones said, he will pray about his decision.

State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said the administration hoped Americans would stand up and condemn the church's plan.

"We think that these are provocative acts," Crowley said. "We would like to see more Americans stand up and say that this is inconsistent with our American values; in fact, these actions themselves are un-American."

At the White House, spokesman Robert Gibbs echoed the concerns raised by Petraeus. "Any type of activity like that that puts our troops in harm's way would be a concern to this administration," Gibbs said.

Jones, who has about 50 followers, gained some local notoriety last year when he posted signs in front of his small church declaring that "Islam is of the Devil." But his Quran-burning scheme attracted wider attention. It drew rebukes from Muslim nations and an avalanche of media interview requests just as an emotional debate was taking shape over the proposed Islamic center near the ground zero site of the 2001 terrorist attacks in New York.

Jones, 58, said he had received more than 100 death threats and had started wearing a .40-caliber pistol strapped to his hip. Jones said the death threats started not long after he proclaimed in July that he would stage "International Burn-a-Quran Day."

The Quran, according to Jones, is "evil" because it espouses something other than biblical truth and incites radical, violent behavior among Muslims.

"It's hard for people to believe, but we actually feel this is a message that we have been called to bring forth," he said last week. "And because of that, we do not feel like we can back down."

Muslims consider the Quran to be the word of God and insist it be treated with the utmost respect, along with any printed material containing its verses or the name of Allah or the Prophet Muhammad. Any intentional damage or show of disrespect to the Quran is deeply offensive.

A broad coalition of religious leaders from evangelical, Roman Catholic, Jewish and Muslim organizations met in Washington on Tuesday and condemned the plan to burn the Quran as a violation of American values.

"This is not the America that we all have grown to love and care about," said Rabbi Steve Gutow of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs. "We have to stand up for our Muslim brothers and sisters and say, "This is not OK.'"

The religious leaders met with Attorney General Eric Holder who reportedly called the Quran burning idiotic and dangerous. The meeting was closed to reporters, but a Justice Department official who was present confirmed what Holder said.

Crowley defended his choice of the term "un-American" to describe the planned Quran burning, saying it was "a divisive potential act of disrespect to one of the world's great religions."

"While we support (and) defend our freedoms, including freedom of expression, this is an action that has potential serious ramifications," he said. He said U.S. diplomats had already reported small-scale demonstrations against the Quran burning in several countries "where anxiety levels are building because of the publicity surrounding this proposed action."

Counterprotests planned • At least two dozen Christian churches, Jewish temples and Muslim organizations in Gainesville have mobilized to plan inclusive events — some will read from the Quran at their own weekend services — to counter what Jones is doing. A student group is organizing a protest across the street from the church on Sept. 11. Gainesville's new mayor, Craig Lowe, who became in his campaign the target of a Jones-led protest because he is openly gay, has declared Sept. 11 Interfaith Solidarity Day in the city.

New York mayor defends right to burn Quran • New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Tuesday that Jones' plan to burn the Muslim holy book on Sept. 11 was "distasteful" but that the minister had a right to do it. In recent weeks, the mayor has been defending the rights of Muslims to build a house of worship about two blocks north of the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center. Bloomberg emphasized that Jones' planned act was protected by free speech rights. "We can't say that we're going to apply the First Amendment to only those cases where we are in agreement."