Europeans

Calls for protection of Copts

Despite a statement made earlier in the week by Coptic Patriarch Pope Shenouda to shrug off a resolution that was passed Thursday by the European Parliament calling for the protection of Copts and churches in Egypt, the European Union, among other international community circles, is determined to keep a close eye on the situation of Copts in Egypt as part of a wider concern over the fate of Christians in the Middle East.

"For us, this is not a matter of intervention in the internal affairs of any particular country, but it is a matter rather of the universality of human rights and also of the fate of Christians not just in Egypt but also in other Arab countries where political Islamic groups are set to gain power," said a Brussels based European official who asked for her name to be withheld.

On Thursday, the Strasbourg-based European Parliament expressed concern over the killing of Coptic demonstrators on 9 October in Cairo. The parliamentary resolution, which was also mindful of the fate of Christians in Syria, called on authorities in Egypt to "do more to protect vulnerable and targeted Christians" and to make sure that they "can live in peace and freely express their beliefs throughout the country".

Source: Ahram Online

France's Charlie Hebdo reprints Prophet Mohammed cartoon after ...

by abennis

Paris, November 3, 2011(Reuters)

A French satirical weekly whose office was firebombed after it printed a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed has reproduced the image with other caricatures in a special supplement distributed with one of the country’s leading newspapers.

The weekly Charlie Hebdo defended “the freedom to poke fun” in the four-page supplement, which was wrapped around copies of the left-wing daily Liberation on Thursday, a day after an arson attack gutted Charlie Hebdo’s Paris headquarters.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, which took place hours before an edition of Charlie Hebdo hit newsstands featuring a cover-page cartoon of Mohammad and a speech bubble with the words: “100 lashes if you don’t die of laughter.”

The weekly, known for its irreverent treatment of the political establishment and religious figures, bore the headline “Charia Hebdo,” in a reference to Muslim sharia law, and said that week’s issue had been guest-edited by Mohammed....

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The Firebombing of Charlie Hebdo: Free Speech vs Islam?

by Myriam Francois-Cerrah

Should have the right to publish a satirical issue, in which it presents Prophet Mohamed as the inspiration of the Arab revolutions and subsequent rise of islamist parties in the region (regardless of the accuracy of this link!). They are no doubt largely in a minority, just as those who committed this crime will no doubt be revealed to be a fringe group or renegade individuals.

But there is no denying the fact many Muslims are offended by the decision to run an issue entitled “Sharia Hebdo,” with reference to “100 lashings if you don’t die of laughter” (chuckle) and a “halal aperitif” (ha!) and perhaps more pertinently, to run images of Prophet Mohamed.

For those of us familiar with the work of Charb, this is of course, not entirely surprising – Charlie Hebdo is renowned for being a highly satirical outlet which pushes the limits of public discourse on any given issue through its provocative illustrations and irreverent style. It has in its time been accused of being anti-semitic, anti-Catholic, and now islamophobic to boot and would no doubt parade these accusations as badges of honour. It is a stable source of polemics in the French media, which most people accept with a lot of tongue in cheek.