Photos: Charlie Hebdo Cartoons Spark Protests in Iran

On January 8, a protest took place in Tehran near the French embassy in connection with the publication of cartoons of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo. IRNA news agency reports this.

It is noted that last week, the French ambassador to Tehran, Nicolas Roche, was summoned to the Iranian Foreign Ministry in protest against the offensive act of publishing dozens of cartoons of the country’s top religious leader by the French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo. The Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani told the French ambassador during the meeting: “The Islamic Republic of Iran does not accept any insults against its sacred values, Islamic, religious, and national.”

He also stated that “France has no right to justify insults directed at the sacred values of other countries and Muslim nations under the guise of freedom of expression,” expressing Iran's “strong protest” to the French government.

Earlier, Charlie Hebdo announced plans to publish a special issue featuring cartoons of Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Revolution. The weekly had announced a contest at the beginning of December to create corresponding cartoons. As a result, Charlie Hebdo published dozens of cartoons mocking the highest religious and political figure of the Islamic Republic.

Recalling the “dark history” of Charlie Hebdo's insults against Islam, the Prophet Muhammad, and the Holy Quran, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman emphasized that the French government is responsible for this “hateful, offensive, and unjustifiable” act. “Tehran reserves the right to respond proportionately,” he stated while handing the ambassador an official note of protest from the Foreign Ministry.

The Islamic Republic of Iran expects explanations and appropriate measures from the French government to condemn the “unacceptable behavior” behind the publication, he emphasized.