A formal apology was published late Monday by Jyllands-Posten, the Danish newspaper that drew widespread protest recently after printing several cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad which Muslims across the world found offensive.
Denmark's Islamic Faith Community, the group that initiated the protest, accepted the paper's apology on Tuesday, according to the AP.
Earlier, Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen announced that his government could not apologize on behalf of a paper. Others defended the right to publish the cartoons under the right to freedom of expression.
"The Danish government cannot apologize on behalf of a Danish newspaper. It does not work like that [...] and we have explained that to the Arab countries. Independent media are not edited by the government," he said, according to ISN.
He added, however, that he was pleased with the decision of the newspaper to apologize.
Across the Arab world, Muslims united to protest the cartoons. Libya closed is embassy in Denmark this week, while Saudi Arabia recalled its ambassadors to Copenhagen.
One Iraqi group demanded that Danish citizens be attacked, and Palestinian groups warned Danish civil rights activists in the West Bank and Gaza that they were unwanted. In the West Bank town of Nablus, Palestinian gunmen ambushed an office used by the EU on Monday for a brief period.
In Saudi Arabia, two workers of the Danish dairy company, Arla, were beaten. The company was also forced to halt all exports to the Middle East and to close its factory in Riyadh on Monday, according to Zaman.
Danish goods were also boycotted in the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.
Additionally, the Danish Ambassador to Kuwait was barred on Tuesday from attending the oath-taking ceremony for Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, according to Al-Watan.
Abdullah Al-Baijan, Chairman of the Kuwaiti Union for Foodstuff Merchants and Manufacturers said that “Issuing an apology at this stage is simply not enough,” and suggested that the newspaper's license be revoked, reported Arabtimes.
In light of growing anger over the cartoons, Denmark released an official warning to its citizens not to travel to Saudi Arabia, while Scandinavians were warned against traveling to the Middle East in general.
