The Council on American-Islamic Relations today “repudiated” the use of Islam’s most holy book as target practice by a U.S. soldier who has been removed from his position in Baghdad.

According to the Associated Press, U.S. commanders moved swiftly to avert a crisis after the sniper was found to have riddled a copy of the Quran with bullets.

The AP said the incident had the potential to inflame Muslim opinion against the U.S. military and compromise the delicate alliance it has been forging with Sunni Arab communities against religious extremists.

Local leaders accepted an apology from senior U.S. commanders, and the military said Sunday that the soldier responsible had been disciplined and pulled from Iraq, the AP further reported.

CAIR’s statement reads: “We repudiate this individual’s hateful act, recognizing it is an isolated incident that does not represent our men and women in uniform, the overwhelming majority of whom serve our nation with honor and respect.

“We commend the U.S. military’s swift investigation and the apology by commanders in Iraq. In an effort to prevent such disturbing incidents from happening again, we call on the military to revisit its cultural training policies,” the statement continued.

CAIR is based in Washington, and operates an educational project called “Explore the Quran,” which was launched following allegations of Quran desecration by U.S. military personnel at prisons in Guantanamo Bay.