I think the arson incident was a watershed : French Muslims asked themselves whether they had more in common with the arsonists or with CH. To caricature a bit, the split is between those who can take a joke and those who prefer civil war.

I probably give too much importance to this incident, bearing in mind the political transformations in North Africa going on at the same time. Most French Muslims still have family ties with North Africa. Everyone was against the old regimes (this was undoubtedly a watershed moment for many French non-Muslims, who found themselves in tune with the hopes and aspirations of those of Muslim heritage), and now the great majority find themselves in favour of liberal democracy and its associated freedoms as opposed to theocracy. This helps to put things in perspective.

_{It is rightly acknowledged that people of faith have no monopoly of virtue - Queen Elizabeth II}