LA Muslims protest toons before Danish consulate

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Chanting "God is great" and waving large banners and Qurans, about 300 Muslims demonstrated in front of the Danish consulate to protest the publication of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. The gathering, organized by the western branch of the Muslim Student Association, started with Friday prayers in a park a few blocks from the consulate. "We can debate anything they want, even terrorists who misrepresent our faith, but the Prophet Muhammad is off limits," said Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic relations in Southern California. "The attack on the prophet is an attack on us." Ayloush said violence that the cartoons had ignited - at least 29 people have died in protests across the Muslim world - was unacceptable. But he said publishing them was not a simple case of freedom of speech. "You can't defame someone, or just walk naked on the streets, because freedom of expression has limits," Ayloush said.