NEW YORK, Feb 22: The international furore over the anti-Islam caricatures has pitted Muslims against Muslims as protests over the issue become more violent in some countries, said the New York Times in a report on Wednesday.

The newspaper observed in a detailed report that ‘In a direct challenge to the international uproar over cartoons, Jordanian journalist Jihad Momani wrote: “What brings more prejudice against Islam, these caricatures or pictures of a hostage-taker slashing the throat of his victim in front of the cameras, or a suicide bomber who blows himself up during a wedding ceremony?”’

In Yemen, a newspaper editorial condemned the cartoons, but also lamented the way many Muslims reacted. “Muslims had an opportunity to educate the world about the merits of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) and the peacefulness of the religion he had come with,” Mohammad al Assadi, the editor, wrote. He added: “Muslims know how to lose, better than how to use, opportunities.”

The flare-up over the cartoons has magnified a fault line running through the Middle East, between those who want to engage their communities in a direct, introspective dialogue and those who focus on outside enemies, the Times said.

“This has become a game between two sides, the extremists and the government,” said Tawakkul Karman, head of Women Journalists Without Constraints in Sana, Yemen. “They’ve made it so that if you stand up in this tidal wave, you have to face 1.5 billion Muslims.”

The heated emotions, the violence surrounding protests and the arrests have sent a chill through people, mostly writers, who want to express ideas contrary to the pre-vailing sentiment, the article said.