"A boycott of Danish goods is by definition a boycott of European goods," said commission spokesman Johannes Laitenberger. "We do not consider a boycott of any kind a good means to react."
turkishpress.com
I think those people have found a way to bring the West together again. We couldn't do it. But they can. A free press is basic to democracy.
I think these boys had better consider very carefully what a real confrontation with the West means. I don't think they will win it.
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Violence escalates, positions harden in cartoon crisis
02-07-2006, 07h38
MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan (AFP)
Violent protests against caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed have escalated, with four demonstrators killed during an attack on NATO troops in Afghanistan, and a renewed assault against the Danish embassy in Tehran.
Nine people have been killed since protests erupted worldwide, seven in Afghanistan, and one each in Somalia and Lebanon.
Denmark, where the offending cartoons were first published, absorbed the brunt of Muslim anger, with attacks on diplomatic outposts, threats of economic boycotts, and the expulsion of Danish aid organizations from Chechyna.
Attempts by Western leaders, religious figures and international bodies to appease Muslims infuriated by what they see as the blasphemous portrayal of their prophet seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, as anti-Western protests became more virulent.
Fresh protests erupted Tuesday in Niger, where several thousands demonstrated in the capital Niamey, as well as in Iran.
Positions in the West hardened, too, with key officials expressing impatience with the continuing violence and demanding that foreign governments protect their embassies and consulates from rampaging mobs.
A few have suggested that some Muslim states -- Iran and Syria in particular -- have needlessly inflamed religious passions.
In what has become an act of editorial defiance, another European newspaper, the weekly Nacional in Croatia, published the offending cartoons on Tuesday.
The Afghan protestors were killed Tuesday when some 700 demonstrators attacked Norwegian NATO troops in the northwestern town of Maymana, lobbing grenades into their compound. Three Afghan protesters were killed Monday.
In Tehran, demonstrators throwing firebombs briefly stormed into the Danish embassy Tuesday, with 20 to 30 protestors scaling the compound walls and another 300 outside hurling stones and Molotov cocktails.
The day before hundreds of demonstrators, led by student members of the hardline Islamic Basij militia, attacked both the Danish and Austrian embassies.
Besides summoning ambassadors of Denmark, Norway and Austria to express its anger over the caricatures, Iran has also announced a total ban on Danish imports as well as any other business dealings with the country "until further notice."
The European Commission reacted Tuesday by slamming Iran's decision, and also confirmed that talks on boosting EU-Iranian trade would remain suspended until the escalating dispute over Tehran's nuclear plans is resolved.
"A boycott of Danish goods is by definition a boycott of European goods," said commission spokesman Johannes Laitenberger. "We do not consider a boycott of any kind a good means to react."
Denmark, which remained the top target for protests, scrambled Tuesday to protect its nationals and cope with the diplomatic fallout of the cartoon crisis.
Chechnya's deputy prime minister and local strongman Ramzan Kadyrov banished Danish aid organizations late Monday, adding that he would "not to allow into Chechnya anything that comes from Denmark."
The Danish aid group most affected will be the Danish Refugee Council, which has provided food and shelter to Chechens through both the country's recent wars.
Also on Tuesday, Denmark advised its citizens to leave Indonesia amid fears that protests there could turn violent, and withdrew its national table tennis team from an upcoming tournament in Qatar and Kuwait.
"The Danish foreign ministry and the Danish embassy are recommending that all Danes leave Indonesia," deputy head of mission Ulricht Sorensen told AFP.
Western leaders have sought a middle ground between mollifying Muslim outrage and upholding free speech principles, but several statements this week suggested that patience with the protests may be wearing thin.
"Violence is no way to settle a disagreement," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday, even as she underscored the need for reasoned discussion and calm.
In Italy, Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini suggested that worldwide Muslim protests against the satirical depictions of the Prophet Mohammed were being "orchestrated."
"The reaction in the Islamic world makes one think that all this subversion is being orchestrated -- someone is fanning the flames," he said referring to both Syria and Iran.
Fini's comments followed a call by the Austrian presidency of the European Union on Muslim countries to protect EU nationals from attack by protesters. |
