"This protest is not about the cartoons, offensive as they are," Imam Ahmed Abu- Laban said.
"The cartoons are merely the final drop that caused the cup to overflow.
"We have heard Western politicians relate our faith to terrorism, over and over again, and it is too much. This was the response."
Imam Abu- Laban, who leads a mosque in Copenhagen, said he never intended for rioters to attack Danish embassies and businesses in the Middle East.
But added Danish officials had brought the crisis on themselves by not responding to initial protests.
Imam Abu- Laban said he "cries" for Denmark but doesn't feel responsible for the way the dispute has flared internationally.
"People credit me with far more power than I have," he said.
The cartoons, which were first published in Denmark in
September, have led to angry demonstrations in the Middle East and Asia and a commercial boycott of Danish products in several Middle Eastern countries.
Seeking support
Imam Abu-Laban acknowledged that he began contacting Muslims in the Middle East late last year in an effort to build pressure on the Danish government to condemn the cartoons.
"European politicians want Muslim votes," he said.
"We were running a campaign, trying to create pressure."
He says he'd helped organise visits to Egypt and Lebanon, where he and other Muslims from Denmark displayed the cartoons.
But that those trips were aimed at garnering political support, not inciting riots.