Five people have been arrested in Denmark on suspicion of planning to kill as many people as possible in a building housing a Danish newspaper that in 2005 published cartoons of Prophet Mohammed that outraged Muslims across the world, Reuters reported on Wednesday. “It is our assessment that this is a militant Islamist group and they have links to international terrorist networks,” Jakob Scharf, head of Denmark’s PET security police, said at a news conference Wednesday, according to Reuters.

He added that the alleged attackers planned to “kill as many as possible of those around.”

Jyllands-Posten was the newspaper that first published the Mohammad cartoons, sparking violent protests against Danish and Europeans across the world in which at least 50 people died.

IPI Acting Director Alison Bethel McKenzie said: “We understand that the decision by Jyllands-Posten to publish the cartoons was a controversial one. However, we forcefully condemn the murderous plot uncovered in recent days in Denmark, and which underscores the dangers faced by journalists everywhere whose work shocks or offends. Freedom of expression in general, and of the media in particular, are universal, fundamental rights and must be upheld. Disagreement with published material should only be expressed in a peaceful, law-abiding manner.”