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Prophet cartoons prompt Egypt to cut off Danish dialogue

Prophet cartoons prompt Egypt to cut off Danish dialogue

A Danish newspaper's decision to print cartoons of Muslim prophet Mohammed have caused a diplomatic crisis between Denmark and Egypt, national broadcaster DR reported on Thursday. Egypt's ambassador in Libanon, Hussein Darrar, told news service AFP that Egypt had decided not to continue its dialogue with Denmark on human rights and discrimination. The Egyptian ambassador in Denmark requested, along with ten other ambassadors of Muslim states, to meet with Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen to discuss daily newspaper Jyllands-Posten's decision to print twelve caricatures of the prophet, an act considered blasphemous by many Muslims. Rasmussen refused to meet with the ambassdors, saying that if they thought he had any power to influence what a national newspaper did and printed, the essence of Danish democracy had been lost on them. Egyptian Embassy Councillor Mohab Nasr Mostafa Mahdy said he had not seen for himself what Darrar told reporters, but that he was certain it was based on the information Darrar had received on the matter. 'The Egyptian ambassador in Denmark has said that the case no longer rests with the embassy. It is now being treated at an international level. As far as I have been informed by my government, the cartoon case has already been placed on the agenda for the Islamic Conference Organisation's extraordinary summit in the beginning of December,' Mahdy said.

Israeli football match possible terror goal

One of the young men arrested last week on suspicion of plotting a terror attack was stopped two weeks ago, as police discovered him 'behaving suspiciously' outside a football stadium in the Copenhagen suburb of Brøndby. The young man is one of six young radical Muslims arrested in Copenhagen last week, after the discovery of a large suicide bombing arsenal in the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo was traced to their Danish addresses. Police are now investigating whether there are any links between the alleged terror plans and the Brøndby Stadium, where a football match was held on Thursday evening between the Brøndby club and Israeli team Maccabi Petah-Tivka. National broadcaster DR reported that police would neither confirm nor deny that the match had been the target of a possible terror attack. 'We are aware of press reports of the case, but we don't know precisely where a possible terror attack was supposed to take place,' said police spokesman Erik Johansen of the Glostrup Police. Police had already planned massive security measures during the match, and a large police force was dispatched to protect players and the expected 29,000 spectators from a possible terror attack.

posted by Unknown @ 10:47 AM