Jordan Islamists Torch Danish Flag Over Cartoon

February 25, 2008

Author: Suleiman al-Khalidi

Source: Reuters

http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCAL2587372420080225

Vowing "Revenge against Crusaders who attack the symbol of Islam," dozens of Jordanian Islamists burned the Danish flag on Monday to protest the reprinting of cartoons lampooning the Prophet Mohammad in Danish newspapers.

The Islamic Action Front, Jordan's main licensed opposition party and the political offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, demanded the government expel the Danish envoy until his government offered an official apology.

"Oh government, expel the Danish ambassador: Oh Dane... listen the Prophet is the symbol of our Islam. We will die for his sake and eradicate anyone who humiliates him," chanted angry protesters in the noisy sit-in near the Danish consulate in the capital Amman.

The Islamists also urged Jordanians to boycott Danish products, saying reprinting the drawings was a deliberate insult and part of "the crusade by the West against Islam."