Emmanuel Macron’s defense of Prophet Muhammad cartoons has sparked intense global outrage — with Muslims likening the French president to the devil and burning his photo in the streets.
About 10,000 Muslims rallied in the Bangladesh capital of Dhaka on Tuesday, holding signs reading “#Boycott boycott! #France” and a poster of Macron with shoes tied around his neck — a sign of disrespect. Some also carried portraits of Macron with an “X” on his face.
Meanwhile, Vatan-e Emrooz, a hardline newspaper in Iran, portrayed Macron as the devil and called him Satan in a cartoon on its front page Tuesday.
Other protests have also been held in recent days in Iraq, Turkey, the Gaza Strip and in opposition areas of northwestern Syria controlled by Turkey-backed rebels.
Protesters in the West Bank burned photos of Macron.
The fierce backlash is in response to Macron’s comments last week at a memorial for Samuel Paty, the 47-year-old history teacher who was publicly beheaded in a Paris suburb on Oct. 16 for showing caricatures of Muhammad in class.
His attacker, Chechen refugee Abdoulakh Anzorov, wanted to “humiliate and strike” Paty over the perceived insult, prosecutors said.
“We won’t renounce the caricatures,” Macron said.
The French president pledged to fight “Islamist separatism,” saying it was threatening to take over some Muslim communities in France.
Macron’s response also triggered outrage from Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who said Macron needs “some sort of mental treatment.”
“What is Macron’s problem with Islam? What is his problem with Muslims?” Erdogan said Saturday.
“Macron needs some sort of mental treatment. What else is there to say about a head of state who doesn’t believe in the freedom of religion and behaves this way against the millions of people of different faiths living in his own country?”
France has allowed displays of the cartoons, which are considered blasphemous by Muslims.
Atiqur Rahman, a spokesman for the Islamist political party Islami Andolan Bangladesh, issued comments similar to Erdogan’s.
“Muslims will not let this go in vain,” he said.
“He (Macron) needs mental treatment. He has not only made himself the enemy of Islam, but of all peace-loving people too,” he added, while calling for a boycott of French products.
Pakistan’s parliament on Monday passed a resolution urging the government to recall its envoy in Paris. It came hours after its Prime Minister Imran Khan called out Macron for “attacking Islam.”
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry also put out a statement saying the kingdom “rejects any attempt to link Islam and terrorism, and denounces the offensive cartoons of the prophet.”
And the Arab Gulf state of Qatar condemned “the dramatic escalation of populist rhetoric” inciting religious abuse.
Boycotts of French products have also followed, with some supermarkets in Kuwait yanking items off the shelves and calls for a boycott of French supermarket Carrefour trending on social media in Saudi Arabia. Erdogan has made similar boycott calls.
France’s foreign ministry said the calls for boycotts and “occasionally hateful” protests must end, according to the Guardian.
“These calls distort the positions defended by France in favor of freedom of conscience, freedom of expression, freedom of religion and the refusal of any call to hatred,” the ministry said in a statement.
“Consequently, the calls for boycott are pointless and must cease immediately, as must all attacks against our country, instrumentalized by a radical minority.”
Meanwhile, France has warned its citizens living or traveling in Muslim-majority countries, such as Indonesia, Bangladesh, Iraq and Mauritania, to take extra security precautions. They were advised to stay away from any protests over the cartoons and avoid any public gatherings.
“It is recommended to exercise the greatest vigilance, especially while traveling, and in places that are frequented by tourists or expatriate communities,” France’s foreign ministry said.
The French embassy in Turkey issued a similar warning to citizens there.
With Post wires
"cartoon" - Google News
October 27, 2020 at 11:05PM
https://ift.tt/3kBqSo5
Emmanuel Macron's defense of 'offensive' cartoons sparks outrage among Muslims - New York Post
"cartoon" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2s88pJG
https://ift.tt/3dvq7t1
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Emmanuel Macron's defense of 'offensive' cartoons sparks outrage among Muslims - New York Post"
Post a Comment