The Iranian Foreign Ministry renews its rejection of the offensive cartoons published by the French “Charlie Hebdo”, and affirms that such practices are clear evidence of hate speech.
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Spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Nasser Kanaani
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani renewed his condemnation of the offensive cartoons published by the French newspaper “Charlie Hebdo”.
He considered that this step was “a clear case of hate speech and provocation.”
Kanaani said in his weekly press conference in Tehran today, Monday, that “the Charlie Hebdo newspaper cartoons are not only an insult to the religious sanctities of the Iranian nation, but also an insult to the status of women in society,” according to the official Iranian news agency (IRNA).
He added, “We regret publishing this newspaper in a country that claims to respect the values of others and support their rights, but it does not abide by the clearest principles and foundations that govern international law.”
France, with its black history of colonialism, violation of human rights and freedom of speech at home and abroad, has no right to justify insulting the sanctities of other countries and nations and followers of divine religions under the pretext of freedom of speech.
— Nasser Canaan (@IRIMFA_SPOX) January 8, 2023
Kanani also confirmed that “the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded quickly to the desecration, bCall the French ambassador in TehranTo convey Iran’s message to the French government that the cartoons are offensive to Islamic values.”
He stressed that Tehran “will never allow its sanctities and Islamic values to be insulted.”
Kanaani believed that “the Israeli Zionist regime is behind the publication of the Charlie Hebdo cartoons, as the incident coincided with the Zionists’ move to desecrate Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Palestine.”
The Iranian diplomat also condemned the French government for “supporting the publication of obscene cartoons under the pretext of freedom of expression.”
He called on all governments and countries around the world to “show an appropriate reaction to these sacrilegious actions,” as he put it.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it regretted “the permanent failure of the competent French authorities to confront manifestations of Islamophobia and institutional racism there.”
It is noteworthy that the French weekly newspaper “Charlie Hebdo” published a series of caricatures of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, last Wednesday, to commemorate the 2015 attack on its office in Paris, by French Islamists, which left 12 dead.
The drawings came in the context of a contest announced by the magazine In support of the riots taking place in Iran Since last September 16.
And yesterday, Sunday Dozens of protesters gathered in front of the French Embassy in TehranIn rejection of the insult directed by “Charlie Hebdo” to the religious authority and Islamic sanctities and values.
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