Death threats against Swedish Mohammed cartoonist Lars Vilks by Swedish al-Shabaab member Abu Zaid – migration for terror also urged

US monitoring group SITE said that Swedish al-Shabaab member Abu Zaid has made death threats against Swedish artist Lars Vilks for drawing a picture of Islam's prophet Mohammed.

In a video posted on jihadist forums, Zaid said 

"Know what awaits you, as it will be nothing but this: slaughter!''

"To my brothers and sisters, I call you to make (migration), and if you can kill this dog called Lars (Vilks), then you will receive a great reward from Allah,"

Vilks, who drew the picture of Mohammed with the body of a dog, has dismissed the threat saying he feels safe.

The cartoon was published in 2007 by Swedish newspaper Nerikes Allehanda to illustrate the importance of freedom of expression.

Since then, Vilks has received numerous death threats, including a suspected assassination plot.


Source: The Local (A Swedish online news site). Note: Report from the local contain contents from AFP. A report from AFP can be view here.


Comments: This is yet another 'death for blasphemy' case threatening freedom of expression.

 Some (the "Minimizers") might try to dismiss it saying it came from a fringe extremist. But the very recent cases only several days ago of Asia Bibi being sentence to death in Pakistan and Walid Husayin being arrest and facing a possible life sentence in the Palestinian West Bank, illustrates that people such as him are not fringe. In fact only weeks ago there was a move by Muslim countries at the United Nations to impose a global blasphemy law.

 This issue also is not a Christian-Muslim matter as some might try to portray since Husayin is an ex-Muslim atheist. Neither is this a West versus the non-West issue since Pakistan and the Palestinian West Bank are not in the West. This is a reminder to watch out for the "Confusers" (See the case of John Larkin) who always try to confuse the issue with something else like race or culture or this or that issue. Also keep in mind the fact that followers of other religions do not react as violently to insults (or even terrorism that kills thousands in the most savage fashion) as these people do, in case the "Equalizers" and atheists comes around with their 'moral equivalence' arguments claiming all religions to be equally violent.

There are similarities between Abu Zaid's call to use immigration as a means for terror and previous incidents such as American Muslim convert al-Qaeda spokesman Adam Gadahn urging of Muslim immigrants to carry out terror attacks against the host countries, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's Samir Khan saying he was ''proud to be a traitor to America'', and failed Times square car bomber Faisal Shahzad who said that he "did not mean it" when he swore the pledge of allegiance to the U.S. during citizenship ceremony.

Vilks should not live in fear ('security phobia' which is what they are trying to create) but should not dismiss it so lightly either. Theo Van Gogh was murdered in 2004 for the same offense and recently Molly Norris has had to changed her name and go into hiding after receiving death threats for urging people to draw pictures of Mohammed as an exercise of free speech.

There is also the case of Roshandra Chaundry who was recently convicted for attempted assassination of a UK MP, although that was for the MP's support for the Iraq war. Closer to home for Vilks, only a few days ago, news emerged that a Tunisian Swedish citizen had carried out a suicide bombing in Iraq, with his Swedish widow Anna praising him for it. These are only a few of the publicly known cases and there must be several others not made public or undiscovered.

So it is wrong in a way for Vilks to dismiss it too lightly. Dismissing or denying it will not make the problem go away. Instead, it plays into the hand of those who, for various agendas or misguided reasons, deny or minimize the serious threat from Islamic extremism.

A better response from Vilks would be to remind people again of the threat, not only to free speech but to everything else, from Islamic extremism, and to urge them and the government to take action against it, and to demand that no concessions be made to the terrorists or to the PC censors who wish to ban all criticism of Islam, as is happening in the case of Geert Wilders, and to further reaffirm the importance of freedom of expression, as it is being done by this blog with the articles posted here and also even by it's mere existence.


Previous similar or related stories:

Tunisian Swedish citizen carried out suicide bombing in Iraq and Swedish widow Anna says it's right and is proud

Aid group volunteer Nima Ali Yusuf, a Somali native, charged in San Diego with aiding and recruiting for al-Shabab

Days after Pakistan sentenced Christian woman to death for blasphemy, Muslim countries will vote again at the UN for global blasphemy law

Asia Bibi Update: Some Muslims considered water fetched by her, a Christian, to be unclean [Bibi was accused of blasphemy in Pakistan and sentence to death]

Ex-Muslim Atheist Palestinian, Walid Husayin, facing life sentence for “insulting” Islam as some call for his death for apostasy

White American Muslim convert Zachary Adam Chesser pleads guilty to terror charges [Includes threats against South Park cartoon for showing Muhammad]