Danish 'Cartoon' Editor Asked To Take Leave Of Absence

Publication of the cartoons in the Danish newspaper has prompted violent demonstrations across the Muslim world, like this one at the Danish Embassy in Kabul (file photo) (AFP)

9 February 2006 -- The Danish editor who decided to publish satirical cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad has been asked by his newspaper to take an extended leave of absence.

The editorial board for the newspaper, the "Jyllands Posten," said Flemming Rose, the paper’s culture editor, was under an extraordinary amount of pressure and needed to take time off.

It was unclear how long Rose will be gone.

Rose initiated the satirical caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad at the end of September. The publication has sparked massive protests by Muslims around the world, including attacks on Danish and other Western embassies and several deaths.

Rose has defended the caricatures as an attempt to test what he said was the increasing tendency towards self-censorship in the media with regard to Islam.

(dpa, AFP)