Islam and censorship

Islamic teachings and argument have been used to censor opinions and writings. Once example is the fatwa (religious judgment) against The Satanic Verses (a novel), ordering that the author be executed for blasphemy. Depictions of Muhammad have inspired considerable controversy and censorship. Some Islamic societies have religious police, who enforce the application of Islamic Sharia law. In non-Islamic countries, Islam has often been cited as a reason for self censorship. Sometimes this self censorship is because of threats of violence.
Censorship in Non-Islamic Countries
There are several examples of self-censorship in non-Islamic countries. For example, South Park were mired in controversy for satirizing issues surrounding the depiction of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. The website for the organization Revolution Muslim, a New York-based radical Muslim organization, posted an entry that included a warning to creators Parker and Stone that they risk violent retribution for their depictions of Muhammad. It said that they "will probably wind up like Theo Van Gogh for airing this show." This caused Comedy Central to censor the episodes.
Mohammed Bouyeri murdered Van Gogh as he was cycling to work in the early morning of 2 November 2004, in front of the Amsterdam East borough office (stadsdeelkantoor), on the corner of the Linnaeusstraat and Tweede Oosterparkstraat (). The killer shot van Gogh eight times with an HS 2000 handgun, and Van Gogh died on the spot. The killer also tried to decapitate van Gogh with a knife, and stabbed him in the chest with another. The two knives were left implanted; one attached a five-page note to his body. The note (Text) threatened Western countries, Jews and Ayaan Hirsi Ali (who went into hiding). The note also referred to the ideologies of the Egyptian organization Takfir wal-Hijra. The suspect, Mohammed Bouyeri, a 26-year-old Dutch-Moroccan citizen, was apprehended by the police after a chase and being shot in the leg. Bouyeri has alleged terrorist ties with the Dutch Hofstad Network. He was charged with the attempted murder of several police officers and bystanders, illegal possession of a firearm, and conspiring to murder others, including Hirsi Ali. He was convicted on 26 July 2005 and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole.

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