Tens of thousands of people took to the streets across Pakistan on Friday because of the decision of the French magazine Charlie Hebdo to reprint a cartoon of Prophet Muhammad.
In January 2015, the cartoons triggered a terrorist attack by Muslims on the Charlie Hebdoeditorial office in Paris. Twelve people died in the attack.
Protesters present chanted “death to France” and called for boycotts of French products. There were also signs with texts such as: “Beheading is the punishment for blasphemy”.
The demonstrations, among other things, brought traffic in Karachi to a standstill for some time. There were also protests in Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Lahore and Dera Ismail Khan.
Friday’s demonstrations were organized by the radical Islamic party Tehreek-e-Laibak Pakistan (TLP). “Reprinting the cartoons leads to terrorism. Every so many years this blasphemy of Mohammed is repeated. It has to stop,” said TLP district leader Razi Hussani in the megacity of Karachi.
Criminal trial terrorist attack started
The editors of Charlie Hebdo decided to print the cartoons of Prophet Muhammad for the second time this week, because of the criminal trial that began. The editorial team wanted to show that the editorial team is facing the process with a fighting spirit. These are older prints that were previously printed in the weekly.
Cartoons of Prophet Muhammad first sparked mass demonstrations by Pakistani Muslims when printed in Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten. A cartoon contest around Mohammed organized by PVV leader Geert Wilders in 2018 also caused a stir in the Asian country.
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