STOCKHOLM (Thomson Financial) - Swedish telecoms giant Ericsson said it is keeping a "low profile" in the Middle East after Al-Qaeda in Iraq threatened it over a cartoon which appeared in a Swedish newspaper.

"We decided yesterday to take down our company flag in the Middle East to reduce our visibility," company spokeswoman Aase Lindskog said.

"We take the threat very seriously. We have thousands of employees in this region. We remind them that the general security precaution advises and recommends a low profile, not to wear the T-shirt of the company, etcetera."

Ericsson was one of the Swedish firms named in a statement purportedly from the leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq which appeared on the Internet on Saturday, threatening violent retaliation over the cartoon.

The group also offered a 150,000 usd reward for anyone who slit the throat of cartoonist Lars Vilks, whose cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed with the body of a dog appeared in the Nerikes Allehanda newspaper on August 18.

Other companies mentioned in the statement were Scania, Volvo, Ikea and Electrolux.

Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt met representatives of Sweden's Muslim community and some 20 ambassadors from Muslim countries earlier this month in a bid to defuse the row and avert a major diplomatic incident.

Egypt, Iran and Pakistan have lodged formal protests with the Swedish government and religious leaders in Afghanistan have condemned the cartoon.

"We are following the situation. We keep in touch with the Swedish embassies. We recommend citizens be vigilant in those countries as we have already said the last few weeks," a Swedish foreign ministry official said Sunday. tf.TFN-Europe_newsdesk@thomson.com wj

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