Cartoon Jihad Hits Wilmette

How bizarre is this. The headline in the print edition of The Wilmette Life reads "Protesters take over schools' Web site". You would imagine a variation of Code Pink for Kids with such a banal headline. Or maybe a protest about cafeteria food. But no, it's the cartoon jihadists hijacking the Avoca schools website:

For a short time last week, the Avoca schools’ Web site disappeared from the Internet, and an Islamist protest screed took its place.
A group of overseas hackers apparently attacked the school’s site, and replaced it with one of their own intended to fuel an international dispute that has led to riots and threats.
Local officials refused comment Monday on the contents of the site, but a representative of the FBI — charged with investigating the case — confirmed late Monday that the Web site was similar to others that have pirated other sites worldwide. They apparently blast recent republication of controversial cartoons featuring Islam’s Prophet Mohammed.
The cartoons first appeared in 2005 in a Danish newspaper which considered them an exercise in free speech. Islamic extremists have threatened death to those who break the Islamic ban on creating depictions of the Prophet.
Riots over the cartoons led to the death of over 100 people around the world in the fall of 2005.
On Feb. 12, Danish police arrested three men suspected of planning to assassinate Kurt Westergaard, the author of a cartoon showing Muhammed wearing a bomb-shaped turban. After the arrests, several European newspapers reprinted the cartoons which may explain the recent hacking.
Chicago FBI spokesman Ross Rice said Monday that “it was his understanding” that the Wilmette site attacked the publication of the cartoons.
A Wilmette Police report indicated the site that temporarily took over avoca.k12.il.us was attributed to “Turkish Hackers” and three apparent individuals: “Ciglik & Dracula & K@RT@L.”
The three names and “Turkish Hackers” also appear on other pirated Web sites that admonish “Dishonourable Denmark!” and demand “Lift the Caricatures!”
Those Web sites continue, “ You keep abusing Islam’s almighty Prophet with disgusting and disgraceful cartoons using excuses of freedom of speech.
“No doubt, ...Christ ... would dislike and hate your nation. Be God’s Curse On You!”

As you might expect, it happened about 4:30 a.m. One of those teachable moments.

UPDATE: And there was an armed robbery in Winnetka this afternoon?