Cartoonist arrested in the Netherlands....

For discrimination against Muslims and 'people with dark skins'....

MPs from across the political spectrum have urged justice minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin to explain the arrest of a cartoonist on discrimination charges.

The cartoonist, who operates under the pseudonym Gregorius Nekschot, was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of publishing work which discriminates against Muslims and 'people with dark skins'. The arrest follows a complaint made against Nekschot in 2005.

In a short statement, Hirsch Ballin said there was no question of there being limits placed on the right to free speech in the Netherlands.

Nekschot, an established cartoonist whose work features in magazine HP/De Tijd amongst others, was released after spending Tuesday night in custody. His house was searched and a quantity of work taken away.