By DPA
Copenhagen : The police in Denmark Tuesday made several arrests to avert a suspected plan to kill a newspaper cartoonist who drew one of the controversial cartoons of Prophet Mohammed that sparked violent protests in 2006.
Kurt Westergaard’s depiction of the Prophet wearing a bomb as a turban was one of 12 caricatures published by the daily Jyllands-Posten in September 2005. The publication sparked protests in several Muslim countries and triggered boycotts of Danish goods.
Westergaard, 73, said he was “angered” that his work was “abused to unleash such madness,” the online edition of Jyllands-Posten reported Tuesday.
Danish security police head Jakob Scharf said the arrests were made near the city of Aarhus and that the suspects had been under surveillance for some time. Public broadcaster DR said at least five arrests were made.
The arrests were “a preventive measure,” Scharf said in a statement.
The security police have not raised the terror alert in Denmark.
Westergaard and his wife have for several months lived under police protection and have had to move to several secret locations.
Jyllands-Posten’s editor-in-chief Carsten Juste said he hoped the arrests had “averted the murder plans.”