( 05 Feb 2006 Rv) Syrians set fire to the Danish embassy in Damascus today to protest
against the publication of newspaper cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. The caricatures
have sparked outrage in Muslim countries across the world, following their publication
in a Danish newspaper in September. In a statement issued today the Vatican made
known its’ position on the issue. It said «The right to freedom of thought and expression
...cannot entail the right to offend the religious sentiment of believers» but added
that an offence caused by a single person or an organ of the press cannot be blamed
on the public institutions of the country involved, concluding that Violent actions
of protest are therefore likewise deplorable. Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald president
of the Pontifical Congregation for Inter religious dialogue tells us more…