Kurt Westergaard, the Prophet Muhammad cartoonist from Denmark dies at 86.
Kurt Westergaard, the 86-year-old Danish cartoonist whose depiction of the Prophet Muhammad enraged many Muslims around the world, has died.
His family told the Berlingsky newspaper that he died after a long illness.
Since the early 1980s, Westergaard has been a cartoonist for the conservative newspaper Jyllands-Posten.
In 2005, he became recognized around the world for publishing a controversial cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad in the newspaper.
The cartoon by Westergaard, which depicts a turban in the shape of a bomb, was one of 12 published by the publication to express a viewpoint on self-censorship and criticism of Islam.
Many Muslims consider large-scale depictions of the Prophet Muhammad to be prohibited, and even upsetting to some of them.
Denmark’s government received complaints from ambassadors of Muslim-majority nations after the newspaper’s drawings prompted protests.
In February 2006, protests erupted across the Muslim world as a result of the anger. Several Danish embassies were assaulted, and dozens of people were killed.
The publication of cartoons left an indelible mark. An attack on the offices of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, which published cartoons, killed 12 people in 2015.
Following the publication of the cartoons, Westergaard received numerous death threats and murder attempts.
He went into hiding at first but then decided to live publicly in a awell-protected residence in Aarhus, Demark.
Three people were arrested in 2008 by the Danish intelligence service on suspicion of conspiring to assassinate Westergaard.
Two years later, near Westergaard’s residence, Danish police detained a 28-year-old Somali with a knife. Mohammed Gil, the young man, was found guilty of attempted murder and terrorism and was sentenced to nine years in prison.
In his final years, Westergaard had to live with a bodyguard at unidentified homes.