Teacher in hiding, young woman arrested amid Dutch Islam cartoon debate

Teacher in hiding, young woman arrested amid Dutch Islam cartoon debate

by Joseph Anthony
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Dutch police said on Friday they had arrested a young woman in Rotterdam on suspicion of inciting threats, after a teacher went into hiding following a classroom discussion on the killing of French school teacher Samuel Paty last month.

It was not clear if the unidentified 18-year-old, who police said posted messages on social media, was a student at the Emmaus College high school in Rotterdam.


Schools in the Netherlands, France and Germany had been asked to hold a moment of silence on Monday for Paty, who was beheaded by a man of Chechen origin in a Paris suburb last month after showing pupils cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad by the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.
During a classroom discussion at the Emmauscollege, students noticed a satirical cartoon that had been hanging on a bulletin board for years and some took offence.
The cartoon, which won a national prize in 2015, shows a decapitated figure labelled โ€œCharlie Hebdoโ€ sticking its tongue out at a bearded man with a bloody sword.
A photo of the image began circulating on social media and within a day the teacher had gone into hiding due to what police said were serious threats.
On Thursday a second school in Den Bosch said one of its teachers was staying home after a similar incident.
The Rotterdam case was condemned by Dutch lawmakers and sparked a wider political debate.
โ€œIt is disturbing that our efforts to promote freedom of expression led to unrest and even threats at schools in Rotterdam and Den Bosch,โ€ Education Minister Arie Slob said in a letter to parliament.
โ€œIntimidation of teachers cannot be tolerated in any way.โ€
REUTERS

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