ABSTRACT
In 2005 a Danish newspaper demonstrated its panegyric for free expression by publishing 12 caricatures of the Muslim Prophet Muhammad, despite the belief held by many Muslims that the Prophet should not be depicted. The publication of the cartoons offended some Muslims and caused a political debate in Denmark reminiscent of the 1989 controversy in Britain sparked by Salman Rushdie’s critique of Islam in The Satanic Verses. The debate, which started locally, soon spread to other countries in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Africa and North America, and transformed into an international conflict of startling magnitude and deadly consequences.
