If this is the "freedom" troops are protecting out there may I suggest Britain is wasting its time, money and most of all, lives?

Barrie Redfern, Zdole, Slovenia

Ask a question... go to jail. That's what I love about Islam - it's so inquisitive and tolerant. Can anyone say 7th century?

Mike Jefferson, Washington, D.C.,

Hey Abul......God himself gets up red-faced with anger and destroys "all "peoples who attack Israel....for "some reason".....Hmmm, what could it be I wonder?...he has enough and strikes......just deserts to be sure.....that goes for the West as well!

V> Michael, St. John, Canada

Islamic law is an unjust law. An unjust law is no law at all. I don't understand why one billion people don't have the common sense to reject this nonsense.

Steven, Canterbury, UK

Yet another instance of media looking at the negatives of Islam.

Mark Rhodes, Leeds,

How can a country , who has signed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, have another law which forbids the latter!
It's a farce, and a pity for this new generation, who is beginning to understand the ever growing dangers of organized religion, with all its falsity, superstitions and ignorance.

Spin Ozah, Curepipe, Mauritius

UK/US are naive, ignorant in thinking they can achieve anything in AFGH . They still do not understand the fanatic mindset of these people..its too late now, the damage is done....why the shock!! this kind of thing happens all the time....Has Bin Laden been found yet?

C. Kroustis, London, UK

What we need to see in the news is the names and photos of the main prosecutors and persecutors of heroes like Sayed Parwez Kambakhsh. Why should the innocent become known, and forever be a target, while the evil men behind his tribulations rest in comfortable anonymity?

Austin Hook, Milk River, Alberta, Canada

bringing up women’s rights or " the P. M.wrote verses of the Quran just for his own benefit.”, should not cause uproar. there is more to this than merely insults This has nothing to do with Islam, but politics. if the Afghs are interested in honoring Islam they should the kings of each other.

Twahiru, Seattle, USA

Islam is not superior to other organized religions. Likewise, God, by whatever name called, is not superior yo godlessness. If saying that means insulting Islam and God, then Islam has got it all wrong. Islam should re-think its priorities.
I am not a Muslim or follower of any other religion.

V. C. Bhutani, Delhi, India

Abul,

if Islam had a few adherents it would be banned world over just like Nazism is. Unfortunately it has about a billion followers...

however just remember that might does not make right
(there are about a billion Hindus also)!

also remember what happened to Hitler !

carmine cicchiello, adelaide, australia

We (USA) need to go get this guy out. Whether by force or reason, he doesn't deserve to spend a single day in prison. Send BlackWater in if needed. The USA also needs to pull out of Afghanistan. I cannot believe we are in fighting for a government that would still do this.

Arran, CA, USA

The real enemy here is ignorance

Les H, Zhangzhou, China

Islam still a 'religion of peace'?

Dr.Van Nostrand, Dublin, Eire

Oh Abdul Abdul, what don't you understand?

"Those who speak ill of God and his Apostle shall be cursed by God in this life and in the life to come."

It says shall be cursed by 'GOD', there's no mention of man! That's what's wrong with religion, it's interpretated by man, badly at that!

Mike C, London, UK

I don't know which is worse, this example of religious oppression or that represented by the creationists in the US. This is why I'm a non-believer as religion has been, in my view, the biggest curse of humanity, causing more pain and grief than war or pestilence throughout history.

Ian Dickson, Brighton, UK

"Those who speak ill of God and his Apostle shall be cursed by God in this life and in the life to come."

Does "Cursed by God" mean put to death by humans? If you truly believe in this statement, why don't you let God do the punishing? Why is it you people always think you know God's will?

Cre, Boulder, USA

No, Ryan, Miami, USA

The world would be a much better place without humans.

Iano, Haverhill, UK

"The world would be a much better place without religion."

Why? If there was no religion people would make something up that they could fight about. Perhaps we should ban football, considering the violence? No, it's people, not religion that are to blame.

Chris, UK,

To Abul: no comment, other than to say that either a) you are completely wrong in every respect, and your arrogance is spellbinding ... or b) you are correct, in which case punishment on earth and beyond would be pleasant when compared with reading the utter drivel you have written.

Omar, Birmingham,

I am not defending the severity of the punishment here but at the same time some of the comments outlined here are suprising. Please note that NO one in Afghanistan asked to be liberated. You cannot bomb a country to the ground and then expect a western style democracy to be in place.

Abdul Motin, London, United Kingdom

Nice to see tolerance and freedom of speech on the up and up. Doesn't it warm the cockles of your heart?

E J Murray, Kerry, Ireland

Abul
"Those who speak ill of God and his Apostle shall be cursed by God in this life and in the life to come."

What about the life after the life to come? Do you get parole?

Andrew, Santiago, Chile

"Those who speak ill of God and his Apostle shall be cursed by God in this life and in the life to come." - Abul, Chicago.

Yup. Sounds like a religion of peace and tolerance to me.

Mike, Brighton, England

Religion is the enemy of free thought.

Kazuki, Tokyo, Japan

Yesterday a Christian aid worker was murdered by Muslim Afghans, and now this young man is lucky to get 20 years in prison for questioning his Muslim faith. It is hard to see why our soldiers are risking their lives and being killed in Afghanistan.

Peter, Maidstone,

i really can't get how someone can wish to take another persons life because of their views about a god who gave life. if islam is such a tolerant religion, why does it often lead to such ruthless interpretations and idiolatry to the point of ridiculousness and in this case nearly murdering a youth!

James , London, UK

We are fighting to save this country? From what?

Tony Willis, London,

The world would be a much better place without religion.

Ryan, Miami, USA

How can anyone get justice in such circumstances where the right to think and question even ones own beliefs is denied? University teachers should be encouraging individuals to consider whether what they are taught is really true. Blind belief is truely blind.

Bill, Cockermouth, UK

This really isn't *that* different from what we've got in this country, abiet without the death penalty.

Don't forget - download articles on "terrorism", and you can be sentenced to years in prison for "possessing records likely to be useful in terrorism".

Joe Lander, Surrey, UK

Meanwhile Jacqui Smith wants the contents of every website visited, email, text message, phone call made in the UK to be recorded on a database...

Jacinta, London, UK

So this is the kind of regime our taxes are being spent to support.

Jerome Healy, London,

Is it really worth one Western soldier's life that they should be trying to uphold a society who's constitution and judiciary can produce this barbaric sentence on a person for expressing an opinion? Bring our people home.

John, Soudan, France

Hey- my President has been telling us for the past seven years since September of 2001 that our military has been spreading Democracy and freedom to these people- :(

Scott Benowitz, Rye, New York, U.S.A.

What can one say? Twenty years in jail - and lucky (so far) not to be dead - for an alleged "offence" that would not cause a single eyebrow to be raised in a European or US university. It's not just a different world, it's a different planet!

John, Canterbury, UK

whats the point of bringing freedom to that country if they are still fundamentalists?

will, grimsby, uk

"Insulting Islam" is a crime under Islamic law. see the Koran, Sura 33:57. Note that those who speak ill of Mohammed will be punished not only in the hereafter, but in this life as well. "Those who speak ill of God and his Apostle shall be cursed by God in this life and in the life to come."

Abul, Chicago, USA