Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, an Islamist organization, was not mincing words at a press conference in October 2008 when it launched its nationwide campaign against a newly-released novel: The Jewel of Medina is a shallow and disgusting portrayal of some of the dearest people to us. The author has taken the role model marriage of the Prophet Mohamed (May Peace Be Upon Him) to Aisha (Mother of the Believers) and turned it into a cheap novel. She has portrayed the most intimate and private matters in a grossly insulting matter, and she has fabricated a story line that repeats the false slander against Aisha. People will be outraged, disgusted, appalled and offended by it. This book is undoubtedly offensive. It is amazing that some in Western Europe and North America—the author, the publisher and some journalists—celebrate as a value they call enlightened the freedom to insult, abuse and denigrate others.[1] The novel, by American author Sherry Jones, covers the early life and loves of the Prophet’s youngest and favorite wife. Late last year, it looked set to ignite a firestorm over freedom of expression and self-censorship. Although the book’s mix of sex and the sacred seemed to offer more than enough fuel for the flames, this particular fire soon fizzled out. So what makes The Jewel of Medina different from the Danish cartoons crisis or The Satanic Verses saga?