French magazine Charlie Hebdo stirs controversy with 'vulgar' cartoons on Iran's leader Ayatollah Khamenei - All you need to know

The January issue of Charlie Hebdo features the winners of a recent cartoon contest, in which participants were asked to create the most offensive caricatures of Iran's leader Khamenei.

Pic Credit: File Photo

French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo has stirred controversy with its latest cartoons on Islamists targetting Iran and the country's violent crackdown on women's protests. Iran on Wednesday condemned the 'offensive' caricatures of the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The magazine has been in the limelight before also when it published another controversial, 'vulgar' cartoon 'mocking' Islamists. 

Two French-born al-Qaida extremists attacked the newspaper's office in 2015, killing 12 cartoonists, and it has been the target of other attacks over the years.

What is controversial about Charlie Hebdo's latest issue?

The January issue of Charlie Hebdo features the winners of a recent cartoon contest, in which participants were asked to create the most offensive caricatures of Khamenei, who has been the leader of Iran since 1989. The contest was organized as a show of support for the anti-government protests occurring in Iran. Some of the winning entries depict Khamenei as a cleric reaching for a hangman's noose while drowning in blood, while others show him clinging to a giant throne above protesters raising their fists. Other entries depict more vulgar and sexually explicit scenes.

Revue de presse par @omarsouleimane |"L’histoire de #MahsaAmini n’est pas moins violente que celle du Tunisien Mohamed Bouazizi. Mais pour l’instant il n y a aucune manifestation en faveur des droits des femmes dans les pays arabes. Comment l’expliquer ?" https://t.co/PIAcPF5ZBp

— Charlie Hebdo (@Charlie_Hebdo_) January 5, 2023

Le numéro de la semaine est à retrouver chez votre marchand de journaux ou sur https://t.co/5SPrx5RObP ! pic.twitter.com/zdhEXXzVy5

— Charlie Hebdo (@Charlie_Hebdo_) January 4, 2023

Iran's foreign minister pulls up the French govt

Iran's Foreign Minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, has promised a "decisive and effective response" to the publication of the cartoons, which he believes have insulted Iran's religious and political authorities. The French government has previously criticized the magazine, which is privately owned, for stirring up tensions, but has also defended the right to free speech. Iran has been experiencing widespread protests for the past four months, triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who was detained by Iran's morality police for allegedly violating the country's strict Islamic dress code.

Women's protests in Iran and subsequent crackdowns

The protests, which have been led by women and include calls for the overthrow of Iran's ruling clerics, represent one of the biggest threats to their rule since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Charlie Hebdo, which has previously published offensive cartoons about dead child migrants, virus victims, neo-Nazis, popes, Jewish leaders, and other public figures, claims to be an advocate for democracy and free expression but frequently pushes the boundaries of French hate speech laws with sexually explicit caricatures that target a wide range of groups. The magazine faced backlash for reprinting caricatures of Islam's Prophet Muhammad, originally published by a Danish magazine in 2005, which were seen as sacrilegious and deeply hurtful to Muslims worldwide, although many Muslims still condemned the violent response to the drawings.

(With PTI inputs)