A terrible traffic accident claimed the life of the Swedish cartoonist Lars Felix, who was famous for his cartoons of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him and his progeny.
The 75-year-old was killed along with two policemen who were with him after their car collided with a truck, Swedish police confirmed to AFP.
“The accident is being investigated like any other traffic accident, but because it also concerns the killing of two policemen, a special section of the Public Prosecutor’s Office has been assigned to this investigation,” a police spokesman said.
The accident occurred near the small town of Markarid when the car in which Felix was traveling collided with a truck, both vehicles caught fire, but the truck driver was rescued, who is now undergoing treatment in hospital, police said.
“The person we were protecting died along with two police officers in this unimaginable sad tragedy,” regional police chief Karina Pearson said.
Felix has been under police protection since one of his cartoons – which included an insult to the Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace – in 2007 angered Muslims.
His cartoons also caused diplomatic tensions in Sweden, where then-Sweden Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt met with ambassadors of Muslim countries to ease the tension.
In 2015, Felix survived a shooting incident during a conference in Copenhagen, which resulted in the death of a Danish director.
