Prooving the picture right?

Pope Benedict XVI has offended some in the Muslim world for daring to quote from a dialogue by the Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaeologusyou can read more about Emperor Manuel on Wikipedia
in which he states “Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.You can read the entirety of the Pope’s speech, in English, here

The irony of this story doesn’t become apparent however, until one takes a look at the Muslim responses. Consider the following from the New York Daily News:

Headline: “Threats of an attack on Vatican”

A radical Muslim group threatened a suicide attack on the Vatican yesterday even as the Holy See said Pope Benedict regretted that some Muslims were offended by his comments about the role of violence in the spread of Islam.

The pontiff “sincerely regrets that certain passages of his address could have sounded offensive to the sensitivities of the Muslim faithful, and should have been interpreted in a manner that in no way corresponds to his intentions,” Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone said in a statement.
But the Pope’s apology by proxy was not enough to quell a string of attacks against Christian churches on the West Bank and in Gaza. And Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood demanded a direct mea culpa from the head of the world’s 1.1 billion Catholics.

Mohammed Bishr, a senior Muslim Brotherhood member, said the statement “was not an apology” but a “pretext that the Pope was quoting somebody else as saying so and so.” “We need the Pope to admit the big mistake he has committed and then agree on apologizing, because we will not accept others to apologize on his behalf,” Bishr said.

An Iraqi insurgent group threatened the Vatican with a suicide attack over the Pope’s remarks, according to a statement posted yesterday on the Web.
“We swear to God to send you people who adore death as much as you adore life,” said the message posted in the name of the Mujahedeen Army on a Web site frequently used by militant groups. The message’s authenticity could not be independently verified. The statement was addressed to “you dog of Rome” and threatens to “shake your thrones and break your crosses in your home.”
you can read the full article here

Hat tip to Fr. WB.