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April 17, 2006

Italy: Muslims Whine Over Cartoon Of Mohammed In Hell

An Italian Catholic monthly magazine, Studi Cattolici, has created a storm amongst the Muslim community in Italy, as in its March issue, it has featured Mohammed in Hell. I say featured, rather than depicted, as the cartoonist did not actually depict the so-called "prophet". Cleverly, they had Mohammed invisible behind a wall of flames.

Fresh after the issue of the Danish cartoons of Mohammed, which caused international condemnations and displays of Muslim intolerance and violence, with scores killed, the latest drawing has reignited a debate which most had thought had died down.

The Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published its 12 images of Mohammed after children's author Kare Blultgen, writing a book on Mohammed, found that illustrators were too scared to submit work for publication, for fear of reprisals by Muslim fanatics. The publication of the cartoons in September showed the world just how fanatical and barbaric many Muslims can be.

The issue only became an international furor this year, after Palestinian-born Danish cleric Abu Laban, together with his Lebanese-born sidekick Ahmed Akkari toured the Middle East to incite anger. They made matters worse by including three extra pictures, which had never been published. One of these was said to have shown Mohammed depicted as a pig. In fact, this picture was of a Frenchman participating in a pig-squealing competition, wearing a pig mask.

The Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten reported with some glee that Studi Cattolica had published the new cartoon.

Today's UK Daily Telegraph reported on the cartoon today, but in an extremely mendacious example of poor journalism. Malcolm Moore either has not seen the image, or is trying to sensationalise the issue, for he writes: "An Italian magazine has infuriated Muslims by publishing a cartoon showing the Prophet Mohammed cut in half and burning in Hell."

We are reproducing the original cartoon below, to disprove his opening statement. Mohammed is not shown. The image is a pastiche of more famous images of Mohammed in Hell, which we described earlier in an illustrated anthology. It is a send-up of illustrations depicting the famous work by Dante Alighieri (1265 - 1321), called the Divina Commedia or Divine Comedy.

In book One, the Inferno in Canto 28, Mohammed (called Mahomet by Dante) is described cleft from his chin "to where one breaketh wind. Between his legs were hanging down his entrails; His heart was visible, and the dismal sack that maketh excrement of what is eaten. While I was all absorbed in seeing him, he looked at me, and opened with his hands his bosom, saying: "See now how I rend me; How mutilated, see, is Mahomet; In front of me doth Ali weeping go, cleft in the face from forelock unto chin; And all the others whom thou here beholdest, disseminators of scandal and of schism while living were, and therefore are cleft thus."

Mahomet is witnessed by Dante, accompanied by Virgil, his guide through the Inferno. Mohammed is disembowelled, and Ali, the figurehead of the Shia faith, has his face split in two. We depicted illustrations of this subject by Gustave Dore, Salvador Dali and WIlliam Blake.

The captions read, from left to right: "That one split in half from his head to his rump is Mohammed?"
"Yes, he is split because he brought division to society."
"While instead that other one with his pants down (or with burning coals) is Italian politics regarding Islam."

Studi Cattolici has links to the orthodox Catholic group Opus Dei. The magazine's editor, Cesare Cavalleri, said: "If, contrary to my intentions and those of the author, anyone felt offended in his religious feelings, I freely ask him in a Christian manner for forgiveness."

He had formerly stated: "We must not fear freedom of opinion, and had alluded to reactions from "the idiotic positions" of Islamists. he stated: "This is not a cartoon against Mohammed. It is a cartoon which addresses the loss of the West's identity. Why all the fuss over a cartoon which only represents that which has already been written centuries ago by Dante Alighieri?"

The Union of Italian Muslim Communities said the cartoon was "odious and racist". Is spokesman said: "The rage was just calmed and here, with an absurd and criminal logic, they go and stir things up."

Opus Dei distanced itself from the magazine, saying it was not an official publication of the group.

The Washington Times reports that Souad Sbai, of an associaion of Italian Muslim women said that Studi Cattolic should "step back, stop and lower the tone." She asked: "Wouldn't it be better to sit down around a table and talk about it, instead of provoking things? What can such an initiative mean?"

According to Arab News, Italy's Interior Ministry recently announced that it had foiled a terrorist attack, which had been planned against a church in Bologna, which is home to frescoes depicting "Mahomet" in Hell, inspired by Dante's work.

Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at April 17, 2006 12:11 PM

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