Peshawar- Peshawar's Christian community today, staged protests against French magazine Charlie Hebdo in solidarity with Muslims around the world and demanded that the cartoonists behind the anti-Islam caricatures be brought to justice.
Christian Community staged rallies from different churches in the provincial capital, including the All Saints Church, which was targeted in a bomb attack on Sept 2013.
Holding placards and banners condemning the blasphemous sketches and cartoons, the protesters marched to Peshawar Press club. The demonstrators also chanted slogans against the French government. The Christian community termed the blasphemous cartoons as serious threat to the religious harmony and world peace.
Such sketches promote intolerance, hatred, violence and extremism, according to the protesters. The demonstrators also urged the world community to take solid and concrete measures against such inciting steps.
Heavily armed men shouting religious slogans stormed the headquarters of the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo in Paris on Jan 8 killing 12 people, including the editor-in-chief. The attack sparked global outrage as world leaders rallied in solidarity with the victims of the attack claimed by the Al Qaeda in Yemen.
Demonstrations were also held in Peshawar and Afghanistan's province of Uruzgan paying tribute to the attackers.
Charlie Hebdo's latest edition after the attack, put together by survivors of the newsroom, once again featured a controversial sketch of an Arab man on its cover – but with a tear in his eye, holding a “Je Suis Charlie” sign under the headline “All is forgiven”. The issue was sold out within hours across France.
Protests against the fresh publication were held across Muslim countries. The protests turned violent in Niger where at least three churches were burnt down by a mob.
A protest organized in Karachi on Friday also turned violent when a clash took place between protesters and police. Security forces resorted to aerial firing, tear gas and water cannons to push back the charged mob.