Cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad courtesy of Google Images
Pakistan Blocks YouTube in ‘Sacrilege’ Row
TIMES ONLINE: Pakistan blocked access to YouTube today because of “growing sacrilegious content” on the video-sharing website. It is the latest twist in an escalating international row over Islam and freedom of speech online.

The move came a day after the Pakistani Government responded to a court order by temporarily blocking Facebook over a page advertising a contest to draw cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.

The Everyone Draw Muhammad Day page and several spin-offs invite users to send in caricatures of the Prophet today – infuriating many Muslims who regard any image of him as blasphemous.

The Pakistan Telecommunications Authority did not say specifically which material on YouTube was deemed sacrilegious, but there are several clips relating to Everyone Draw Muhammad Day. >>> Jeremy Page, South Asia Correspondent | Thursday, May 20, 2010

Turkey Opposed to Danish Premier as NATO Chief
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE: ANKARA, Turkey: Turkey does not back Denmark's prime minister becoming NATO's next secretary-general, a senior Turkish lawmaker said Tuesday.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen is seen as the front-runner to replace Jaap de Hoop Scheffer as NATO secretary-general when his term ends at the end of July.

Turkey, a NATO member, objects to Fogh Rasmussen because of the 2006 prophet cartoon crisis, his reported opposition to Turkey's EU membership and his stance on Kurdish rebels, said Suat Kiniklioglu, top foreign policy official in the prime minister's party.

"It is unacceptable that NATO be headed by an individual who has in the past rudely disrespected our values and religious beliefs," Kiniklioglu said in reference to Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad that sparked Muslim protests.

Fogh Rasmussen defended freedom of speech amid the protests. >>> The Associated Press | Tuesday, March 24, 2009

It’s All Part of a Crusade, Say the Taliban
REUTERS: KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan Taliban militants have branded the reprinting of a satirical cartoon of the Prophet Mohammad in Danish newspapers and a film on the Koran by a Dutch politician as part of a "Crusader war" against Muslims.

The Islamic movement, which is leading an insurgency in Afghanistan against Afghan and foreign troops led by NATO and the United States, also called for aid for the Palestinians in their conflict with Israel.

"We see the publication of cartoons and insult of the Holy Koran as part of the Crusaders' war," the Taliban said in a statement posted on the group's Web site. Cartoon and Koran film part of "Crusader war:" Taliban >>>

Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)