Somali Man Charged With Attempted Murder of Danish Mohammad Cartoonist

A Somali man with ties to al Qaeda was charged with the attempted murder of Kurt Westergaard after he broke into the cartoonist's home with an axe and knife with the intention to murder him for depicting Mohammad in a series of cartoons that were published in 2005.

A Somali man was charged Saturday with two counts of attempted murder for an attack on a Danish artist whose 2005 cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad ignited riots and outrage across the Muslim world, authorities said.

The 28-year-old Somali -- who had ties to al-Qaida -- broke into Kurt Westergaard's home in Aarhus on Friday night armed with an ax and a knife, said Jakob Scharf, head of Denmark's PET intelligence agency.

The 75-year-old artist, who has been the target of several death threats since depicting the Prophet Muhammad with a bomb-shaped turban, pressed an alarm and fled with his 5-year-old granddaughter to a specially made safe room.

Officers arrived two minutes later and tried to arrest the assailant, but then shot him in the hand and knee when he threatened them with the ax, said Preben Nielsen of the Aarhus police.

Several Islamist groups issued fatwas in the aftermath of the publication and called for the death of the cartoonist and those responsible for their publication. Riots also ensued around the world with several embassies being damaged, and rioters murdered more than 50 people.

It's instructive to remember what Westergaard refuses to back down in the face of the violence. He doubled down on the jihadis in 2008 with yet another critique of the Islamists and their incessant violence against those who do not believe as they do.

Curiously, the Danish authorities aren't releasing the name of the man, who they say has ties to al Qaeda and al Sahab terror groups, and may have carried out other terror attacks in Africa.

LiveLeak Restores Fitna

Good for them. LiveLeak had to take down the video after threats were made against the company and its employees. They've put in additional security measures and have reposted the video. At least some companies believe in free speech and the rights and responsibilities therein.

On the 28th of March LiveLeak.com was left with no other choice but to remove the film "fitna" from our servers following serious threats to our staff and their families. Since that time we have worked constantly on upgrading all security measures thus offering better protection for our staff and families. With these measures in place we have decided to once more make this video live on our site. We will not be pressured into censoring material which is legal and within our rules. We apologise for the removal and the delay in getting it back, but when you run a website you don't consider that some people would be insecure enough to threaten our lives simply because they do not like the content of a video we neither produced nor endorsed but merely hosted.

UPDATE:
Via Hot Air, I note that Wilders may be releasing a slightly modified version of Fitna that doesn't include Kurt Westergaard's cartoon and makes other minor edits. The inclusion of the cartoon violates Westergaard's copyright, and Wilders will make other minor edits. Westergaard notes that had Wilders asked him to use the cartoon, he might have given his permission. It was sloppy work on Wilders' part not to ask permission.

However, one has to wonder what kind of effect it will have on the debate over the film given that millions of people have already seen it, downloaded it via BitTorrent and other outlets. Still, I'd be interested to see what edits are made and how it affects the overall film's presentation of a difficult subject.

Fitna Fallout

Well, Geert Wilders film Fitna (Ordeal) has made quite the splash on Liveleak with nearly 1 million views within the first hour alone. That's pretty impressive.

The reaction and fallout has already begun.

Pakistani officials have formally complained to the Dutch ambassador over the film. It certainly can't be because the Koran is taken out of context or that the words of the terrorists depicted in the film are taken out of context. It is, however, all about silencing a critic of jihad and the Islamists who do not like anyone exposing the truth about what is preached to Muslims around the world.

Similar protests by Iranian and Indonesian have been made. Have any of them actually seen the film or are they simply listening to what their mullahs are reporting?

Dutch officials are seriously concerned about the fallout from the film, despite the fact that Wilders has to be under heavy security from the very kinds of Islamists that he depicts in his film. They've judged that it is more important to kowtow to the Islamist position than to openly discuss what the Islamists think of the rest of the world, their ideological underpinnings and the call by the mullahs to jihad. Volokh notes that Wilders is arguing against a violent and dangerous ideological movement.

Bangladesh has already seen demonstrations against the film. I doubt any of them have actually logged on to see it.

A Dutch Muslim group is looking to sue Wilders under hate crimes laws. Nice. Whatever happened to free speech and freedom of expression? That all goes by the boards because Muslims refuse to allow anyone to express an opinion that might show Muslims in a bad light. It's the slow creep of Islamofascism.

UPDATE:
Meanwhile, Kurt Westergaard and his union are contemplating suing Wilders over the unauthorized use of his cartoon to open the film.

The Danish Union of Journalists said Friday it will sue Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders for copyright infringement for using a Danish cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad in his anti-Quran film.

The union said it will file a lawsuit on behalf of Kurt Westergaard, the cartoonist who made a controversial drawing in 2005 depicting Islam's prophet wearing a turban shaped like a bomb.

"Wilders has the right to make his movie but he has no permission to use my drawing," Westergaard said in a phone interview with Denmark's TV2. Westergaard has been living under police protection since an alleged plot to murder him was uncovered last month.

"This has nothing to do with freedom of speech. It is all about copyright," Westergaard said. "I won't accept my cartoon being taken out of its original context and used in a completely different one."

Wilders definitely needs to get this resolved and it was sloppy work on his part not to get Westergaard's permission to use it.

UPDATE:
NATO is concerned that the film could affect their operations in Afghanistan. That's an interesting concern - the Taliban who are behind the ongoing instability are featured in the film, along with al Qaeda. They don't need any excuses to attack the West or NATO. They've already got their grievances and demands for non-Muslims to submit to Islam. They could, however, add fatwas for Wilders' death.

UPDATE:
The European Union has issued a statement denouncing the film.

Slovenia, which holds the rotating EU presidency, said it supported the Dutch government's position and believes the film does nothing to promote dialogue among religions.

"The European Union and its member states apply the principle of the freedom of speech which is part of our values and traditions. However, it should be exercised in a spirit of respect for religious and other beliefs and convictions," the Slovenian presidency said in a statement.

"Mutual tolerance and respect are universal values we should uphold. We believe that acts, such as the above-mentioned film, serve no other purpose than inflaming hatred."

It's rare to hear them denouncing ongoing terrorism done in the name of Islam by jihadis, whether it is in Afghanistan, Thailand, Philippines, or Israel. Where are the calls for tolerance when the jihadis are busy blowing up schools, businesses, rioting, and otherwise seeking to kill non Muslims and those who are not strict adherents to their brand of Islam?

UPDATE:
Michelle Malkin links. Thanks!

UPDATE:
UN Secretary General Ban condemns the publication. Figures. The same criticism I made of the EU applies here. Where is his condemnation of terrorism done in the name of Islam that happens on a daily basis? He's supposed to be upholding all the tenets of the UN Charter, including the freedom of expression.

Kurt Westergaard Doubles Down

Westergaard is one of the cartoonists whose images were useful fodder for Islamists who whipped their parishioners into a frenzy of rage and hatred and violence. The Muslims who rioted around the world complained about the bad portrayal of Muslims and that of Mohammad all while committing all manner of violence (torching embassies and businesses, and murdering more than 50 people).

He's doubling down. As someone who is the focus of multiple death threats and fatwas and a recent assassination plot that brought out media in Denmark to republish the same cartoons in response, he's not backing down from the jihadis:



UPDATE:
Found this interview of Westergaard at Family Security Matters, and it's quite an interesting read as he goes off on the multiculturalists that enable Islamofascism.

Demonstrative Demonstrations

Once again, the Gazans are busy whining and seething. This time, they're busy complaining about the republication of the Mohammad cartoons, which happened two weeks ago after Danish authorities cracked an assassination plot against Kurt Westergaard, one of the cartoonists.

Flags were burned, and the demonstrators expressed their ire against the likes of Denmark, the US, and Wikipedia (which refuses to stop publication of the cartoons at the heart of the matter). Brian at Snapped Shot has photos of the ongoing demonstrations. Michelle Malkin has more. The editors have done their best to crop the heck out of the photos to sanitize the messages of hatred and venom.

They're busy burning effigies of Westergaard (and jumping over the flaming carcass?) in Pakistan [ed: added location for clarity]. Seriously. What is this about? Getty Images has a whole bunch of these types of photos.

I have to wonder just how many of the protesters actually know what Wikipedia is.

Demonstrations also took place in Indonesia and Kuwait, where one of the signs indicated that the demonstrators are more than willing to sacrifice their sons for the cause. How comforting.



Syria warns that the cartoons will lead to a religious war. Right, as though the ongoing jihad against the West by the Islamic co-religionists is to be ignored?

UPDATE:
Jammie notes that the Islamists are sure to start complaining about snack foods before long. You see, some actually use alcohol to tease out additional flavors, but are in minute quantities so are therefore not included on ingredient lists.

A tiny amount of alcohol is used in some products as a chemical agent to extract flavour.

The use of alcohol was discovered by Besharat Rehman, who owns a halal supermarket in Bradford, and reported in the Eastern Eye. Mr Rehman said: “Our suppliers were unaware of the alcohol. Walkers must make it clear on the packaging so customers can make an informed choice.”

Shuja Shafi, who chairs the food standards committee of the Muslim Council of Britain, said that he intended to investigate. “Certainly we would find it very offensive to have eaten food with alcohol.”

Right, it would be offensive to eat foods containing alcohol, but you don't seem to have a problem with co-religionists turning into suicide bombers and slaughtering innocents. I find that highly offensive.

UPDATE:
Charles at LGF points out that the AP is busy calling the protestors torching Danish flags human rights activists. George Orwell would be proud.

Does that make me a human rights activist according to the AP if I publish the Mohammad cartoons to protest the jihadis who blow stuff up in the name of Allah? I didn't think so.

Worldwide Reactions Continue In Aftermath of Cartoon Republication: UPDATE: Bombing in Copenhagen

UPDATE --- See below for latest on bombing incident in Copenhagen ---

While rioting in Denmark itself has settled down (or isn't being reported by the wire services, demonstrations in Muslim countries around the world continue to make news and headlines. One such demonstration took place in Indonesia. At least 150 people demonstrated, organized by Hizbut Tahrir, outside the Danish embassy:

The protesters, who blocked the entrance to the embassies, wore headbands bearing Arabic inscriptions and waved banners saying "Death to those who insult the Prophet" and "Freedom of speech a disguise to insult Islam".

Free speech for me, but not for thee. You disagree with the Islamists, and you could find yourself sans head.

Pakistani officials summoned Danish officials to demand explanations for the cartoon republication.

"The Danish charge d'affaires was called to the foreign office today... to lodge a strong protest over the republication of the blasphemous cartoons in Denmark," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

The Danish envoy was told by a senior Pakistani foreign ministry official that the republication of the cartoons had "deeply offended Muslim feeling and sentiment" all over the world, it said.

"Since hurting sentiments of other religions was not responsible behaviour, the Danish government was obliged as a responsible government to stop the publication of the cartoons," it quoted the official as telling the Danish envoy.

The ministry said that the Danish diplomat explained that his government did not have any hand in the publication of the cartoons and that he would convey the sentiments of the government of Pakistan to his government.

None of these governments are exactly going out of their way to condemn the men who were arrested plotting to assassinate one of the cartoonists who drew one of the cartoons involved. They, instead, are going after the newspapers and those who republished the cartoons.

The matter has even made its way into the United Nations Durban II conference, where they're debating limitations on free speech.

UPDATE:
Kurt Westergaard, one of the cartoonists, and the author who penned the cartoon that accompanies this and other postings on the cartoon jihad, has been kicked out of a hotel where he was staying on fear that the jihadis might strike at him there:

He was booted from his police-protected hotel room on Feb. 15 for being “too much of a security risk.” And now the 73-year-old cartoonist and his wife are without a place to live.

UPDATE:
This is the only report I've seen thus far, but apparently a bomb went off in Copenhagen earlier today and two other suspicious packages were destroyed as well. No one was injured, but it does mark an escalation in the violence. Once again, the author is Jakob Illeborg, and I've been highly critical of him before. He again suggests appeasement in the face of violence, and I'm not alone in that criticism. Eugene Volokh also wonders why Illeborg doesn't consider free speech an important concept worth defending, and instead counsels waiting until it really matters (leaving it completely undefined and amorphous).

Riots Continue for Eighth Night in Denmark

The riots in Denmark continue for an eighth straight night.

A total of 20 towns were hit by fires on Sunday night, with around 29 people arrested - most of them for arson or attempted arson.

In two cases the fires were so strong that blocks of flats had to be evacuated.

Bands of young people have vandalised or set fire to hundreds of cars and a number of schools in the past week, however the situation was said to have been improving over the weekend.

Police said they could give no reason for the behaviour, but said unusually mild weather and the closure of schools for a winter break might have contributed.

Social workers believe an alleged plot to kill a Danish cartoonist for his drawing two years ago of the Prophet Mohammad may have fuelled the riots. Fifteen Danish newspapers reprinted his drawing on Wednesday in protest against the alleged murder plot.

It's almost become a truism about these riots that they're due to winter break combined with unusually warm weather.

Social workers are on the right track, at least in part. The rioting began before the republication of the Mohammad cartoons following the revelation and disruption of an assassination plot against one of the cartoonists. However, things progressively became worse after the republication. Muslim groups denounced the republication, but have been strangely silent over the assassination plot against the cartoonist, Kurt Westergaard, who was expressing his free speech rights to criticize others. It's truly a sad commentary when the cartoons spur the very violence that the cartoons depict.

About 90 fires were reported last night. The Danish Prime Minister puts the onus on those responsible for the violence:

Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Sunday said the rioting youths and their parents bore the responsibility for the unrest, and said they should expect no sympathy from society.

He noted that Denmark's freedom of speech includes cartoonists, and that anger over a drawing did not give anyone "the right to burn others' cars or to burn down schools or institutions."

On Saturday, Danish lawmakers canceled a planned trip to Iran after the Foreign Policy Committee received a letter from Iran demanding that lawmakers condemned the cartoon reprints.

The all-party committee said in a statement that the trip was called off because its members "can't or will not apologize for the drawings."

The violence may lessen now that the Danish schools are back in session.

Still, there are those who think that the riots are self-inflicted by the newspapers that republished the articles. Jakob Illeborg, a writer at the Guardian, thinks that the Danish papers acted hastily and that the reaction was predictable in the anti-Danish sentiment that swept through the Muslim world. Really? Your right to speak your mind is based on the ability to say things that might be uncomfortable or put the beliefs of others in a bad light. You may be satirized, criticized, and lambasted for what you say and what you believe.

The cartoon jihad shows that there are groups, specifically Muslim and Islamist groups, that refuse to accept criticism, satire, or any kind of objection to their views and that their first response is not to speak back, but to whine, seethe, and riot. There is absolutely no reason why people have to watch what they say, print, or draw because it may be offensive to some other group. That's the beauty of free speech. You fight speech with speech. The moment you set a group aside that is exempt from criticism, they are given a position of power over other groups that is neither afforded to them under the law of the state, nor should be granted to them as a practical matter.

He writes:

"But it is the Muslims' fault", a few angry Cif commenters reminded me. That may be, but I think we ought to ask ourselves whether it is worth picking these fights. Of course we must protect our writers and cartoonists from deranged fundamentalists, but we are not faultless ourselves. There were hidden political and religious agendas in the original printing of the cartoons, just as is there are this time around. The latest street riots in Denmark tell their own story of the serious problems with disintegrated migrants that we have at the moment, but they also speak loudly about Danish society's inability to cope with foreign cultures and religions - it is no coincidence that such riots take place in capitals such as Copenhagen and Paris and not in London.

London may not have had riots, but they surely had suicide bombers who attacked the London Underground, and they had the gas-car bomb plot that saw a number of Muslim doctors plot and attempt to carry out mass-casualty attacks across the UK.

The problem isn't so much that the Danes or the French refuse to cope with foreign cultures as much as it is a refusal of Muslim groups to assimilate into the Danish or French cultures. I know and understand that there is resistance in France to accept non-French as Frenchmen, but there is a certain amount of reciprocity involved, and when Muslim groups first impulse is to riot and torch hundreds of cars and businesses and schools, you're not going to get a whole lot of sympathy from this quarter.

There were hidden agendas involved in the publication of the cartoons. It took two months from the time the cartoons were originally published to initiate the riots, and that was after additional cartoons were invented by Islamist groups to further fan the flames of vitriol in Muslim communities around the world. The cartoon riots did not happen spontaneously, but were stage managed by Islamist leaders.

The political statement made by the original publication was, and remains, the ability of people to speak freely and criticize others, and specifically criticize the violent and misogynistic nature of the Islamists.

UPDATE:
Gateway Pundit has more. Astute Northern Seer has a contrary view, with reliapundit questioning that take in the comments.

UPDATE:
In a related note, Wikipedia has been deluged with emails demanding the service take down copies of the Mohammad cartoons. Thus far, Wikipedia refuses to do so. Good for them. (HT: DanThePainter at LGF)

Rioting in Denmark Continues

While some may note that the rioting in Denmark may be related to the latest news out of the country that a group of jihadis were caught plotting the assassination of one of the cartoonists responsible for penning the cartoons that in part provoked rioting worldwide that killed more than 100 people and torched several embassies, the riots have actually been going on for nearly a week.

Turban Bomb has the details as the rioting progressed and became more violent each successive night.

American Thinker reports that some of the Danish authorities can't quite figure out why the rioting is occurring. The quote from the Copenhagen police chief is telling: "We don't know why they're rioting. I think it's because they're bored. Some people say it's because of the cartoons but that's not my opinion,"

That's right. Thugs are busy rioting in your fair city because they're bored. So, what exactly are you doing about this? Are you going in and arresting all those involved, or are you simply going to let them burn off their excess energy? Considering that the rioting has been getting worse, I'd posit that the police chief has been allowing the thugs to riot and rampage and those same thugs know that they're able to get away with it.

In some instances the firefighters responding to the carbeques have been assaulted by the thugs who set the fires.

Meanwhile, the target of the jihadi assassination plot has been living in fear and terror - unable to live at home and can't stay at the same place more than a night. Flemming Rose interviewed Kurt Westergaard, the cartoonist whose life has been in danger ever since he penned one of those cartoons:

For the past three months Kurt and his wife have been moving from house to house. In early November, they had a few hours to collect their most necessary belongings before they were driven to a safe location. They had to leave their car at home because the police wanted to create the impression that Kurt and Gitte were still living in the house. The mail was collected, garbage was removed, and an agent who physically resembled Kurt was installed in the house. This was done in case the plotters were to execute their plans to kill Kurt.

In the middle of December Kurt and Gitte returned to their house for just one day to celebrate Christmas with their family.

Early Tuesday morning Danish police broke into several apartments in the suburbs of Aarhus, the second largest city of Denmark with 250,000 inhabitants. Of the three men who were arrested, two are citizens of Tunisia and one is a Danish citizen of Moroccan descent. The police want to deport the two foreigners, which is possible according to an anti-terror law.

I asked Kurt about September 2005, when I wrote to him and other members of Denmark’s Cartoonist Association asking them to draw the prophet Mohammed as they see him.

“I did the cartoon quickly. It was just another day at the office. I finished with a sense of satisfaction. I felt that I was able to express myself in a simple and clear way, and that’s what every cartoon is about.”

What did you want to say?

“My intention was that some Muslims are using their religion as spiritual ammunition to commit terrorist acts. It was directed at Muslims in general, but exclusively at those who are willing to commit violence in the name of their religion.”

Hot Air has more.