The Hindu : International : Muslim groups vow to retaliate

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 04, 2006

International

International

Muslim groups vow to retaliate

Kim Willsher, Luke Harding, Chris McGreal and Nicholas Watt

Paris/Berlin/Jerusalem/Brussels: The publication of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad in Danish, Norwegian, French and German newspapers has ignited a wave of protest across the Muslim world.

In the Palestinian territories, armed factions threatened to kidnap Europeans unless Governments of the four countries apologised.

On Thursday night, a German citizen was briefly detained by Palestinian gunmen in a Nablus hotel in the West Bank. Gunmen were combing hotels in the city for foreigners and warned hoteliers not to take in guests from the countries.

Elsewhere, dozens of gunmen stormed the E.U. building in the Gaza strip, Norway had to close its diplomatic office and foreign diplomats and journalists were either withdrawing from Palestinian areas or giving them a wide berth.

The Abu-Rish Brigades said it would target citizens of the countries where the cartoons have been published.

``We'll abduct and hurt all citizens of the European countries who hurt Islam's feelings and honour,'' it said.

The only Arab newspaper to break ranks was a Jordanian weekly, Shihan, which published the Danish caricatures to show readers ``the extent of the Danish offence''.

Editor sacked

In Pakistan, more than 300 Islamic students chanted ``Death to Denmark'' and ``Death to France''. Afghanistan's President and Indonesia's Foreign Ministry condemned the cartoons, and Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned the Austrian Ambassador, as representing the E.U., to protest against the publication.

The French newspaper that reignited the furore by republishing the caricatures was fighting for its future.

Hours after the editor of France Soir, Serge Faubert, declared it was an issue of freedom of expression and said it would not apologise for printing the cartoons, the paper's owner, Raymond Lakah, sacked the managing editor.

The E.U. also entered the fray. Franco Frattini, the Justice Commissioner, said the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten was ``imprudent'' to publish the 12 cartoons on September 30. Publication was wrong, he said ``even if the satire used was aimed at a distorted interpretation of religion''.

— © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004

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