(Geert Wilders in NY)Seventeen people were killed and more than 150 injured in a suicide-bomb attack in the North Ossetian capital of Vladikavkaz Thursday. 300 youth staged a protest on Saturday. The Christian protesters shouted slogans against the neighbouring Muslim region of Ingushetia, from where the suicide bomber is believed to have come.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called for the “bandits” who carried out the bombing to be “destroyed,” while Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov demanded more attacks in Russia’s heartland.
Meanwhile, In Denmark a terror attack was apparently averted when the terrorist's bomb went off prematurely, in a Copenhagen hotel bathroom. The bomber apparently intended to target the Jyllands-Posten offices in Aarhus. The man held a counterfeit Belgian passport.
Ground Zero Mosque
Dutch politician Geert Wilders made headlines speaking at the protest in NY against a mosque next to Ground Zero.
Via RNW:
Building a mosque close to Ground Zero would betray those who were killed on 11 September 2001, Mr Wilders added. “For their sakes we cannot tolerate a mosque on or near Ground Zero. For their sakes loud and clear we say: No mosque here! For their sakes, we must draw the line. So that New York, rooted in Dutch tolerance, will never become New Mecca.”
The entire speech is on Wilders' site.
In a Dutch poll 20% said they supported Wilders' decision to speak during the anti-mosque demonstration, and 40% opposed it. About half of the Dutch are against the mosque. 37% of the Dutch think there will be a terror attack in the near future, compared to 27% last year.
In several cities in the Netherlands there were small protests against Geert Wilders organized by the International Socialists and several other organizations under the slogan "We don't want exclusion" and "freedom for everybody"
In an interview on Dutch TV, Ayaan Hirsi Ali said that Wilders should have stayed in the Netherlands and continued negotiation for a coalition, though she did understand his decision to speak at the Ground zero protest.
In Brussels, Vlaams Belang and Cities against Islamization also organized a small protest against the mosque (VIDEO). Filip Dewinter called the project a provocation and a slap in the face of the relatives of the victims.
Koran Burning
A non-event on 9/11 was the plan of American pastor Terry Jones to burn a Koran on 9/11. It's unclear to me why the media gave him so much attention, as a simple search on YouTube will find many instances of individuals burning the Koran.
In any case, Jones got world-wide attention. Responses from European Muslim leaders ranged from French imam Dalil Baboukeur, who called to ignore it, to Imam Mohammad El Sadi of Malta, who called for a peaceful response, to British radical Anjem Choudary, who called to burn American flags in response. This call was echoed by his Belgian start-up, Sharia4Belgium, who accused the Pope of encouraging his followers to burn the Koran. The plan was also denounced by the Ahmadiyya in Britain.
The planned Koran-burning was condemned by various European leaders, among them German Chancellor Merkel who said it was disrespectful, abhorrent and simply wrong.
Update: Fixed typos.
