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| Europe |
| France: Seething Muslim Organization Vows To Appeal Cartoon Acquittal |
| 2007-03-22 |
| Paris, 22 March (AKI) - France's largest Muslim organisation, the conservative Union of French Islamic Organisations (UOIF) on Thursday vowed to appeal a verdict by a Paris court acquitting satirical French weekly Charlie Hebdo's editor of insulting Muslims by reprinting caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed. "We do not understand a ruling that describes one of the cartoons as shocking but says this is freedom of expression," said UOIF president, Lhaj Thami Breze in a statement. Hilites on Comedie Centrale The Grand Mosque of Paris, which is close to interior minister and leading French presidential contender Nicholas Sarkozy, however praise the court's verdict. "This is a wise ruling that manages to balance the right to satire with a group of people's right to lodge a complaint," the mosque said in a statement. It said it would not appeal the verdict. No-brainer - with the UOIF mounting the charge, the GMP can slipstream behind without committment. Any depiction of the Prophet is blasphemous according to Muslim teachings. One cartoon shows a bomb in the Prophet's turban. A second cartoon published in Charlie Hebdo shows the Prophet reacting to Islamist militants by saying: "It's hard to be loved by idiots." Another shows the prophet standing on a cloud, turning away suicide bombers from paradise with the caption "Stop, stop, we ran out of virgins." That "bomb in the turban" cartoon rules. |
| Posted by:mrp |