mediawatchwatch.org.uk

The Jewel of Medina, Sherry Jones’ historical Mo-ro about the prophet of Islam’s child bride, has been withdrawn from bookshops in Serbia after complaints from a Muslim “community leader”.

The book got its global debut three weeks ago in the Balkan state, where it was published by Beobuk. However, Muarem Zukorlic, leader of the Islamic Community in Serbia, deemed it offensive, and demanded all of the published copies to be handed in. He also demanded that the publisher Aleksandar Jasic repent for what he had done.

It is a book that absolutely does not refraining from desecrating something that is considered by all Muslims as untouchable.

So – Muslims shouldn’t touch it. That doesn’t mean everyone else has to keep schtum.

Obviously someone wishes to join the ranks of those who produced the cartoons in Denmark several years ago and it is an insult to all Muslims of the world, especially for us here in Serbia.

Note the standard veiled threat of violence. You want to end up in hiding like those Danish cartoonists?

Jasic needs to sincerely repent because of the incident he caused.

And sincerely repent is exactly what Jasic did.

“It was not our intention to offend anyone, so we withdrew the book from stores, apologised to the Muslim community and I hope that will be the end of it

Zukorlic initially thought this was not enough, but after consultation graciously accepted the gesture:

We decided to accept the apology from the publisher and give up stern reactions. In the following period our activity will be directed towards calming emotions and affirmation of the character and work of the Prophet Mohammed.

Isn’t that nice of him?

UPDATE (1pm) Interestingly, Le Monde blogger Pierre Assouline reveals that French publisher Editions Telemaque published an Aisha novel last year, without causing riots or death threats. In fact, Aïcha, la bien-aimée du prophète by Geneviève Chauvel, which contains “intimate scenes”, was prefaced by a theologian from the notoriously litigious Grande Mosque de Paris. The author also took part in a couple of conference debates on the subject.

Stéphane Watelet, the boss of Telemaque, seized the opportunity to take a pot-shot at US scarediness, suggesting that the “Old Continent” is less timid than the New World. Assouline takes similar delight, and suggests that the personnage of Aisha could become a “new barometer of political correctness”.

The best-loved of the prophet: Geneviève Chauvel's Bedouin bonk-buster was published in the winter of 2007.

(Hat tip Butterflies & Wheels)