Cartoonist defends Mohammed cartoon
Swedish artist Lars Vilks said he had no regret about his cartoon depicting the Prophet Mohammed as a dog
The Swedish artist who created a caricature depicting the Prophet Mohammed as a dog has said the point was to show that artistic freedom allows mockery of all religions, including the most sacred symbols of Islam.
Lars Vilks - the target of an alleged murder plot involving an American woman who dubbed herself Jihad Jane - said he has no regrets about the drawing, which is considered deeply offensive by many Muslims.
Mr Vilks made his rough sketch showing Mohammed's head on a dog's body more than a year after 12 Danish newspaper cartoons of the prophet sparked furious protests in Muslim countries in 2006.
Islamic law generally opposes any depiction of the prophet, even favourable, for fear it could lead to idolatry.
"I'm actually not interested in offending the prophet. The point is actually to show that you can," Mr Vilks said in an interview in Stockholm. "There is nothing so holy you can't offend it."
Mr Vilks submitted the drawing to an exhibit at a Swedish cultural heritage centre, which turned it down, citing security concerns.
The issue went largely unnoticed until a Swedish newspaper printed the drawing with an editorial defending the freedom of expression.
The publication led to protests from Muslim countries, and briefly revived a heated debate in the West and the Muslim world about religious sensitivities and the limits of free speech.
It also led to numerous death threats against Mr Vilks, who was temporarily moved to a secret location after al Qaida in Iraq put a 100,000 US dollar bounty on his head in September 2007.
The 63-year-old artist said he has now built his own defence system, including a "homemade" safe room and a barbed-wire sculpture that could electrocute potential intruders. He also has an axe "to chop down" anyone trying to climb through the windows of his home, in southern Sweden.
