"Dane regrets sparking cartoon furor" by Jan M. Olsen and Karl Ritter | Associated Press, August 10, 2013
COPENHAGEN — A former Danish Islamist who seven years ago traveled the Muslim world, fueling the uproar over newspaper caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad, is back in the headlines in Denmark after doing an about-face on the issue.
As with the never-existed movie that motivated protests, is that really why Muslims were protesting? Or were they protesting continuing occupation and rule by western forces and allies?
Once a leading critic of the Danish cartoons, which sparked fiery protests in Muslim countries, Lebanese-born Ahmad Akkari now says the Jyllands-Posten newspaper had the right to print them.
They do; that doesn't mean they should. There are a lot of things the world corporate pre$$ won't print.
His unexpected change of heart has received praise from pundits and politicians in recent weeks, though some question his sincerity. It has also disappointed some in the country’s Muslim minority who were deeply offended by the cartoons.
Akkari, now 35, was the spokesman for a group of imams who led the protests against the drawings in Denmark. They traveled to Lebanon, Egypt, and Syria to elicit support, saying the Danish government wouldn’t listen to their concerns.
Their journeys helped turn the dispute into an international crisis. Dozens were killed in weeks of protests that included violent attacks against Danish missions in Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, and Lebanon. Tiny Denmark found itself on a collision course with the Muslim world, something Akkari now regrets.
‘‘I want to be clear today about the trip: It was totally wrong,’’ Akkari said this week. ‘‘At that time, I was so fascinated with this logical force in the Islamic mind-set that I could not see the greater picture. I was convinced it was a fight for my faith, Islam.’’
My feeling is this guy was an intelligence agency agent provocateur from the start.
He said he is still a practicing Muslim but started doubting his fundamentalist beliefs after a 2007 trip to Lebanon, where he met Islamist leaders.
‘‘I was shocked. I realized what an oppressive mentality they have,’’ Akkari said.
Yeah, okay. Message received. Muslims are a bunch of irrational and intolerant maniacs predisposed to violence.
A year later, he moved to Greenland, the desolate Danish Arctic island, where he worked in a school for two years. ‘‘I had plenty of time to read and write. And think,’’ said Akkari, who has shaved off the patchy beard he used to wear.
Islamic law generally opposes any depiction of the prophet, even favorable ones, for fear it could lead to idolatry.
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Related: Dung Danish
Just an observation, but I notice that every day my Jewish War Daily carries an handful or two of articles that emphasize the "radical and extreme Islamic terrorist threat."
UPDATE:
"Dutch court blocks extradition of terror suspect to US" by Mike Corder | Associated Press, July 24, 2013
THE HAGUE — Dutch judges blocked the extradition Tuesday of a terror suspect to the United States, saying he was tortured in Pakistan after his 2010 arrest and it is unclear whether American authorities had any involvement.
The Hague Court of Appeal ruling was a significant victory for the man identified only as Sabir K. in his attempts to avoid being sent for trial in America, but Dutch authorities can still launch a final appeal to the country’s Supreme Court.
‘‘He is very satisfied that the role of the Americans is finally being looked at in a critical light,’’ his lawyer Andre Seebregts said. ‘‘He has said from the very beginning that the Americans were involved.’’
Sabir K., who has Dutch and Pakistani nationality, was arrested in Pakistan in 2010 and expelled to the Netherlands in 2011. US authorities accuse him of working with Al Qaeda from 2004 to 2010 and of plotting a suicide attack on an American military base in Afghanistan.
In a statement, the Hague appellate court said that US authorities had issued an arrest warrant for K. three days after his detention in Pakistan.
But it went on to say that circumstances of K.’s arrest and detention ‘‘raised questions’’ among the judges, who cited international human rights groups as saying terror suspects are ‘‘almost without exception tortured’’ if detained in Pakistan.
Judges had asked the Dutch government to seek clarification from US authorities about their role in the detention, but Dutch justice and security ministry officials refused, saying they did not see the necessity of the request.
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