A Danish court has rejected the lawsuit against newspaper Jyllands-Posten, perhaps realizing that Western civilization doesn’t prosecute people for blasphemy any more: Danish court rejects lawsuit against paper that first published Prophet cartoons. (Hat tip: LGF readers.)

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — A Danish court rejected a lawsuit Thursday against the newspaper that first printed the controversial Prophet Muhammad cartoons. Arab politicians and intellectuals warned the verdict would widen the gap between Westerners and Muslims, but said mass protests were unlikely.

The City Court in Aarhus rejected claims by seven Danish Muslim groups that the 12 drawings printed in the Jyllands-Posten daily were meant to insult the prophet and make a mockery of Islam. Islamic law forbids any depiction of Prophet Muhammad, even positive ones, to prevent idolatry.

The court conceded that some Muslims saw the drawings as offensive, but found there was no basis to assume that “the purpose of the drawings was to present opinions that can belittle Muslims.”

Muslim leaders are satisfied that justice was served, and have announced their intention to respect Western principles of free speech from now on.

Just kidding.

“The dismissal of the lawsuit against the newspaper, which was expected, confirms the ongoing intention to harm our religion and our prophet,” said Mahmoud al-Kharabsheh, an independent legislator who heads the Jordanian parliament’s legal committee.

The plaintiffs plan to appeal the verdict, spokesman Kasem Ahmad told Danish radio, adding that he feared Muslims around the world would be upset by the ruling.

More seething in Syria:

“This (verdict) will only widen the gap between the Western and Islamic world,” said Syrian legislator Mohammed Habash, who heads the Islamic Studies Center in Damascus.

Habash said the cartoons constituted an insult to Muslims.“The Western mentality still sees in such things a facet of freedom that should be defended. This reflects arrogance because they want to impose their way of thinking on all other nations,” he added.

An interesting note: Muslim scholars and authorities now seem to have agreed not to incite riots about cartoons.

But not because it’s evil, stupid, and destructive. Because it’s “counterproductive.”

In Lebanon, where protesters set fire to the building housing the Danish consulate in February, professor Radwan el-Sayyed said the verdict was a “misinterpretation of freedom of expression”.

El-Sayyed, who teaches Islamic Studies at the Lebanese University, said Muslims should not regard the court’s decision as an affront.

He did not expect a repetition of February’s riots because, he said, people know that they were counterproductive. “There will be anger, newspaper articles condemning the court decision, but I don’t expect there to be street protests,” el-Sayyed said.

Habash, the Syrian legislator, concurred. “We don’t believe that expressing our rage in the street will be useful,” he said.