Iran Press/commentary: The French publication Charlie Hebdo's blaspheming cartoons of the Holy Prophet of Islam with the support of French President Emmanuel Macron, has spurred anger and outrage among the world Muslims. This is not the first time the Prophet of Islam has been insulted in the West.
It was about 30 years ago that Salman Rushdie, an Anglo-Indian writer, wrote the anti-Islamic book "Satanic Verses" in which the character of Islam's Prophet (PBUH) and his companions were insulted.
Theodor Van Gogh, a Dutch filmmaker and journalist mentioned Islam in a film as the main cause of the suppression of Muslim women.
In 2005, for the first time, a Danish publication published insulting cartoons of the Prophet of Islam in a purposeful move. A year later, a Dutch filmmaker once again made the offensive cartoons published in Denmark as the focus of a film.
In 2015, the French magazine "Charlie Hebdo" insulted and hurt Muslims' feelings towards the Holy Prophet (PBUH). The French publication published insulting cartoons of the Prophet of Islam (PBUH).
Now the French president has backed the insult under the pretext of freedom of expression.
Macron's freedom of expression is exercised selectively and only against Islam. The main purpose of these measures is to counter the spread of Islam. 10% of the French population are Muslims and the tendency towards Islam is increasing.
The actions of some French media along with Macron's support of them are aimed at creating intimidation against Muslims in France and are a sign of the West's inability to counter the increasing tendency to Islam.
It seems that one of the main goals of the insults and the support of the Western officials for insulting the Prophet of Islam is to normalize the insult to the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and part of the West's conflict with the religion of Islam.
The French's pugnacity with Islam met with various reactions throughout the Muslim world. Activists of the Muslim world launched a large-scale campaign, calling for sanctions against French products.
The hashtags "Our Prophet is our red line", "Macron apologizes to Muslims" and "boycott of French goods" became trends in most Islamic countries.
Some groups and large numbers of Muslims even demanded the dismissal of the French ambassador from their countries and cutting off ties with Paris.
The elites of the Islamic world also stressed the need for decisive measures against France's anti-Islam actions, which was also highlighted at the Islamic Unity Conference, which began virtually on last Thursday.
Meanwhile, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei adopted a different method by sending a letter to the French youth and the question that why does Macron support insult to the Prophet of Islam? and does freedom of expression mean to insult and curse?
These reactions show that supporting the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) became a pivot for unity and cohesion in the Islamic countries.
However, confronting the actions and insulting statements of the Westerners against the Holy Prophet and the religion of Islam still requires strong operational measures.
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