It's not confirmed that this is yet another attack on free speech by radical Islamists, but it's looking that way. Fortunately, the death toll is much less than what happened in Paris.One person has been killed and three police officers wounded after a free-speech gathering in Copenhagen ended in gunfire.
The event was attended by Swedish artist Lars Vilks, known for caricaturing the Prophet Muhammad. Vilks was led to safety after shots were heard, according to police.
“Everything points to this shooting” being “a terrorist attack,” Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt said in a statement. It “fills me with deep anger,” she said.
Among the guests debating the role of art, blasphemy and free speech at the Copenhagen event was the French ambassador to Denmark, Berlingske newspaper said. France is still reeling from the shock of the massacre last month at the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo by men police say were radical Islamists. France immediately sent its condolences to the Danish government.
“The President of the Republic has expressed to the Prime Minister of Denmark Helle Thorning-Schmidt all the solidarity of France in this ordeal,” according to an e-mailed statement from Francois Hollande’s office. “Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve will travel to Copenhagen as soon as possible.”
Danish police said the suspects, who were clad in black and reported by an eye-witness to have spoken Danish, may have targeted Vilks. Swedish police are also on alert, according to newspaper Aftonbladet.
“We don’t yet know whether this was a terrorist attack but we’re investigating it as though it was,” police inspector Joergen Skov said at a press conference in Copenhagen. “We now have a lot of police stationed around Copenhagen” as the manhunt for the suspects continues, he said.
Free Speech
The planned debate on free speech took place in a cafe bordering one of Copenhagen’s largest parks. Because of the security risks, body guards and police were already present and able to fire back at the gunmen after they started shooting, Skov said. The three offices who were wounded in the crossfire didn’t sustain serious injuries, he said.
Denmark is home to newspaper Jyllands-Posten, which in 2005 published a series of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad that triggered violent protests across much of the Muslim world. Vilks’s 2007 drawing depicting Muhammad with the body of a dog left Swedish media divided, with some refusing to publish the image amid security concerns.
Police intelligence said Saturday’s attack shows the threat of a terrorist act taking place in Denmark is “serious,” in a statement sent by e-mail.
I wouldn't be surprised if the perpetrators aren't affiliated with any larger terrorist network, but are just lone actors who have been listening to too many angry rants from Imams on youtube.