A man reads the front page of the France Soir tabloid in Paris whose lead headline reads: “Yes, we have the right to caricature God.” (AFP)

Paris, Feb. 1 (Reuters): Newspapers in France and Germany reprinted Danish caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed today, saying press freedom was more important than the protests and boycotts the cartoons have sparked across the Muslim world.

The Danish embassy in Damascus was evacuated after a bomb threat that turned out to be a hoax and Syria recalled its ambassador from Denmark in protest against the cartoons, one of which shows the Prophet Mohammed wearing a turban shaped like a bomb.

In Copenhagen, security police met Islamic leaders in a bid to calm reactions there. Muslims consider images of prophets distasteful and caricatures blasphemous.

Dalil Boubakeur, head of the French Muslim Council, denounced the publication of the drawings as a “provocation”.

Two large Danish companies reported their sales falling in West Asia after the incident led to protests in the Arab world and calls for boycotts.

“Enough lessons from these reactionary bigots!” France Soir editor Serge Faubert wrote in a commentary explaining why his newspaper had printed the cartoons. “Just because the Quran bans images of Mohammed doesn’t mean non-Muslims have to submit to this.”

Germany’s Die Welt printed a similar piece to accompany the cartoons. “There is no right to be shielded from satire in the West,” it said. “Being able to make fun of the holiest things is a non-negotiable core tradition in our culture.”

French foreign ministry spokesman Jean-Baptiste Mattei said France supported press freedom, which “should be exercised in a spirit of tolerance and respect for beliefs and religions”.

Jyllands-Posten, the Danish newspaper that first published the cartoons last September, has apologised for any hurt they may have caused.