Norway: Muhammed cartoon

The debate rages in Norway about whether this is or isn't a Muhammad cartoon.

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Adresseavisen, a Norwegian newspaper, printed its very own 'Muhammad cartoon'. Of course, most newspapers who reported about it, did not dare print it themselves, and at most sufficed with a picture of the paper. NRK brought a facsimile version.

[Update: Adresseavisen published the cartoon on their site, in an article headlined "This is not Muhammed"]

"I am Muhammed and nobody dare print me!"

Arne Blix, chief editor, realizes that cartoon is controversial, but thinks it's necessary. This is Adresseavisen's response to the attack against the Danish embassy. Blix doesn't expect negative reactions from the Muslim world, and he doesn't think it's a cartoon of Muhammed and that it doesn't attack Muhammed or Islam. He says it shows a terrorist who commits violence in the prophet's name.

Adresseavisen's cartoonist, Jan O. Henriksen, says that this is not a picture of Muhmmad. Henriksen says this cartoon is completely different from the Jyllands-Posten cartoons, since he didn't draw it in order to be provocative. He didn't agree with his colleagues who supported the Danish Muhammad cartoonists. He says that here he's talking about people who hide behind religion in order to support terrorism. It's provocative that people think that if somebody waves the Islam card than people will give in on any criticism of what is a real terrorist act.

Lawyer Abid Q. Raja thinks this is a cartoon of Muhammed and that the newspaper is hiding by saying this is a cartoon of a terrorist. If it would be a terrorist, he says, it would say "I am Muhammad, nobody dares stop me when I blow up suicide bombers."

Sources: NRK 1, 2; Adresseavisen (Norwegian)

This article was cross-posted to Islam in Europe and to THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS