Muhammad Caricature Watch: Protesters Rally in Pakistan and Iraq

Iraqis carry placards professing their faith to the Prophet Mohammad during a protest in Kerbala, 110 km (70 miles) south of Baghdad February 21, 2006, against the cartoons and caricatures depicting the Prophet Mohammad published in several European newspapers.

ASSociated Press: Protesters Rally in Pakistan, Iraq

About 2,000 people chanted “Death to America” and “Death to Denmark” as they rallied in a small town near the Afghan border to protest the Prophet Muhammad cartoons that have sparked violent demonstrations in Muslim countries.

The protesters in Barwand also burned flags of Denmark _ where the caricatures were first printed _ and torched effigies of the Danish prime minister and President Bush.

In Iraq:

About 10,000 people also protested against the cartoons in the southern Iraqi city of Karbala, burning Danish flags and demanding Iraq sever ties with Denmark.

An Iraqi policeman holds a weapon on a police vehicle near residents protesting against cartoons and caricatures depicting the Prophet Mohammad, published in several European newspapers, in Kerbala, 110 km (70 miles) south of Baghdad February 21, 2006.

Taliban, pro-Al Qaeda demonstrations and Iraqi insurgent inspired demonstrators how original. The intensity of the demonstrations appear to be less today. A different type of protest in Pakistan….

Pakistani police officers sit at a market closed due to strike called by traders unions to protest the publication of cartoons depicting Islamic Prophet Muhammad Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2006 in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Shopkeepers shut their doors in a bustling city near Pakistan’s capital to protest the cartoons that have sparked a string of violent demonstrations across the country in the past week.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said Tuesday the cartoons were an attempt to cause a “clash of civilization” by people who are ignorant about Islam and want to demonize the religion.

“We cannot condone such insensitivities toward our beliefs and condemn it in the strongest way,” he said at an Islamic conference. “Islam does not believe in the clash of civilization, rather it advocates harmony, coexistence, peace and compassion.”

Just outside Pakistan’s capital in Rawalpindi, about five major markets were closed Tuesday as shopkeepers protested the cartoons.

Mushtaq Ali Shah, senior vice president of Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which helped organize the strike, said a rally wasn’t being held because the businesses didn’t want the protest to turn into a riot that damages property.

Probably a smart move about the rally……but why destroy your own people’s property?

MORONIC……but DEADLY SERIOUS…….

A Pakistani labor walks in a market which closed due to a strike called by traders unions to protest the publication of cartoons depicting Islamic Prophet Muhammad Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2006 in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Shopkeepers shut their doors in a bustling city near Pakistan’s capital to protest the cartoons that have sparked a string of violent demonstrations across the country in the past week. The placard at left reads: ‘Complete strike against the publishing the cartoon of Prophet Muhammad.’