Protesters in Iran Condemn Charlie Hebdo Over Muhammad Cartoon
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Version 0 of 1. TEHRAN — Iranian protesters, encouraged by state-sanctioned Friday Prayer leaders, condemned the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo for publishing a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad. In cities across Iran, tens of thousands of people took to the streets on Friday in organized protests, shouting slogans and chanting “death” to France, Israel, Britain and Charlie Hebdo, and burning flags. Iranian leaders, including prominent Friday Prayer leaders, have denounced the Jan. 7 attack on the newspaper’s offices in Paris, but have also given permission for several protests, including one in front of the French Embassy in Tehran on Monday, where some called for the French ambassador to be expelled. “The attack on Charlie Hebdo was a pretext for attacking Islam,” Kazem Sadeghi, a prayer leader in Tehran, said Friday. “But fortunately the attack led to unity among Muslims who all condemned the desecration of our holy prophet.” |