Iran Press/ Iran News Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Thursday that any insult and disrespect to the Holy Prophet of Islam and other divine prophets is not acceptable at all.
He added: "The insulting act of the French magazine under the pretext of freedom of expression hurts the feelings of the monotheists of the world, and it is a provocative act and insult to the Islamic values and beliefs of more than one billion Muslims in the world."
Khatibzadeh emphasized: "Contrary to the insulting action of the French magazine, freedom of expression is a sublime value that should be used constructively for the peaceful coexistence of human beings and greater understanding between religions."
The decision to republish the Islamophobic cartoons seen as a renewed provocation by a publication that has long courted controversy with its satirical attacks on religion.
The caricatures re-published this week were first printed in 2006 by the Danish newspaper Jyllands Posten, setting off sometimes violent protests by some Muslims who found the depictions offensive.
The Prophet Mohammad is deeply revered by Muslims and any kind of visual depiction is forbidden. The caricatures were perceived as linking him with terrorism.
Charlie Hebdo, infamous for its irreverence and accused by critics of racism, regularly caricature religious leaders from various faiths and republished them soon afterward.
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