By Heba Zakaria, IOL Staff
CAIRO — Denmark’s Muslims vehemently condemned a car bomb blast that targeted the Danish embassy in the Pakistan capital Islamabad earlier on Monday, June 2 warning this would only serve hate-mongers.
“We condemn this bombing and other acts of violence and extremism,” Mohamed Al-Barazi, the chairman of the Muslim Association of Denmark, told IslamOnline.net over the phone from Copenhagen.
A car bomb rocked the Danish embassy in Islamabad early Monday.
Government-run television said at least eight people were killed and nearly 30 others injured.
Two of the dead were policemen and two others were said to be foreigners.
The Danish daily Politiken quoted embassy charge d’affaires Michael Hjortso as saying only one Dane was in the building at the time of the blast.
The bombing left a huge crater outside the embassy, damaging a nearby development agency.
Dozens of cars were wrecked by the force of the explosion and some were on fire.
Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller denounced the attack as “totally unacceptable” and called an emergency ministerial meeting.
“I of course condemn this attack. It is terrible that terrorists commit such acts,” he told Danish TV2 News.
Hate-mongers
Barazi suspects that the attack is linked to the reproduction of cartoons lampooning Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him) by Danish newspapers.
“We denounce the reasons that led to the attack, including (the production) of the blasphemous cartoons,” he told IOL.
Denmark’s main dailies reprinted in February a drawing of a man described as the Prophet with a ticking bomb in his turban.
The move has reignited a controversy that first surfaced in 2005 after the mass-circulation Jyllands-Posten commissioned and printed 12 cartoons of the Prophet, sending thousands of protesting Muslims into the streets across the world.
Though no one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack, militant groups in Pakistan have in recent months threatened Denmark over the cartoon reprinting.
Barazi fears the embassy attack will play into the hands of right-wing parties in Denmark.
“This is an irresponsible act that harms the Muslim presence in Europe in general and Denmark in particular,” he stressed.
“The attack will play into the hands of right-wing parties in tightening the noose around Muslims.”
Barazi hoped Danish Muslims, estimated to number more than 200,000 or three percent of the population, will face no backlash following the attack.
“Muslims have always called for dialogue to avoid facing such a situation.
“Danish Muslims are planning a series of moves to show their condemnation of the attack and a genuine desire to integrate into society.”
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