The dispute over the cartoons in the French magazine "Charlie Hebdo" is widening. After Tehran announced that it would close the French research institute IFRI in Iran, the French ambassador in Tehran was also summoned.
For background: The French satirical magazine had announced a cartoon competition, on the eighth anniversary of the attack on the Paris editorial office, under the title #MullahsGetOut. The cartoons mock Iran's supreme spiritual leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The aim of the action: " It was one way of showing our support for the Iranian men and women risking their lives to defend their freedom against the theocracy oppressing them since 1979. It was also a reminder of the fact that the reasons why Charlie’s cartoonists and writers were assassinated eight years ago are still, sadly, topical," says editor-in-chief Laurent Sourisseau, known as Riss.
One of the selected drawings, for example, shows Khamenei trying to save himself from drowning by a rope in a lake of blood. In another cartoon, Khamenei strolls past the corpses of hanged men, of whom only the feet are visible. The speech bubble reads, "Is it me or does it smell like cheese feet here?"
According to the editors, they came up with the idea because the Iranian ayatollahs had announced a similar competition in 1993. The target at the time was Salman Rushdie, author of the novel The Satanic Verses.
According to the editors, they received 300 submissions from all over the world (here is a selection), around 35 of which were printed in the current issue. The reaction of the regime in Tehran was programmed: The publication of these cartoons was unseemly and insulting. One does not allow the French government to cross such borders. Tehran also announced that it would close the French research institute IFRI in Iran, and the French ambassador was summoned.
The reaction of French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna: "Unlike Iran, we have freedom of the press." Colonna also pointed out that there is no ban on blasphemy in France.