Mohammed cartoons provoke riots

These twelve Mohammed caricatures were published last year by Jyllands-Posten in Denmark. Although the images went un-noticed for several months, Islamic groups have now started protesting against them, leading to riots outside newspaper offices and Danish embassies in which several people have been killed.

Western media outlets are fearful of provoking extremist Islamic retaliation, thus they have largely avoided printing the cartoons, though it must be remembered that the over-reaction is the problem, not the provocation. These cartoons are not racist - they satirise the Islamic religion and its prophet, not Muslim people.

Religious fundamentalism has been a cause of prejudice and violence for centuries. The violent reactions to these cartoons say more about extremist intolerance than about blasphemy - protesters in London held intimidating placards reading "EXTERMINATE THOSE WHO MOCK ISLAM".