Charlie Hebdo: Controversial Prophet Muhammad cartoons have been republished

The French humor magazine Charlie Hebdo decided to republish the controversial cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad a day before the trial, which will begin on Wednesday, for the 2015 attack on the magazine.

Laurent “Riss” Sourisseau, editor-in-chief of the magazine, used the words “We will never kneel, we will never give up” in the last issue’s editorial.

On January 7, 2015, gunmen stormed the Charlie Hebdo building in Paris and killed 12 people. Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for the attack organized by the brothers Cherif and Said Kouachi of Algerian origin. The organization announced that it “took revenge” for the publication of the cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in the magazine.

On the cover of the first issue of Charlie Hebdo after the incident was a depiction of the Prophet Muhammad.

In the trial, which begins Wednesday, 14 defendants are charged with providing logistical support and possession of weapons to those who attacked Charlie Hebdo’s office in Paris, then the Jewish market and the police officer.

Three defendants, believed to have fled to Syria and Iraq, will be tried in absentia.

There were about 200 complainants in the case and those who survived the attack were said to be heard as witnesses.

The case, which is scheduled to start in March but has been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak, is expected to continue until November.

The cover of the latest issue of Charlie Hebdo includes 12 cartoons published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten in 2005 and reprinted in 2006 by Charlie Hebdo.

In the center of the cover is the representation of the Prophet Muhammad by the cartoonist Jean Cabut, who died in the attack in 2015 and is known as Cabu. The headline of the latest issue of the magazine says “It’s all for this.”

The magazine’s editorial team argued that it was the “right time” to republish the cartoons just before the murder case hearing:

“After the 2015 attack, we were frequently asked to publish other cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. We did not do so because it was prohibited, which the law allows us to do. We should have a good reason to do so, a significant reason for the discussion. .. “

After the attack on the magazine’s office, Charlie Hebdo’s publishing line was also the subject of controversy. While some argued that what the magazine was trying to do was pave the way for free speech, some opined that the magazine “crossed the line.”

On the other hand, the motto #JeSuisCharlie (I am Charlie), used to condemn the massacre, has become the common slogan of the reaction to the massacre, being accepted in France and throughout the world.