Grand Ayatollah:

French Embassy in Iran Shall Be Closed in Response to Anti-Prophet Cartoons

Navideshahed: Grand Iranian Shia cleric, Ayatollah Hossein Nouri-Hamedani, condemned here on Thursday the publication of anti-Islam cartoons in a French magazine and asked government to shut down the French embassy in Tehran.

News ID: ۳۶۶۱۲۲

يکشنبه - ۲۴ آذر ۲۰۱۲ / 2012 24 September

Speaking to a number of senior Parliament members, the clergyman added that while protests against anti-Islam film made in the US are still underway, publication of such cartoons in France is surprising and questionable.

Grand Ayatollah pointed to insulting cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) published in the French magazine and said that it is necessary to expelled the French ambassador from the country and the French embassy be closed.

International institutions should guarantee full respect to sanctities of divine religions by ratifying preventive measures, protesters gathering in front of French embassy said in a statement released here on Thursday.

The protesters called for unity among Muslims and respect for the holy prophet of Islam (PBUH), and expressed disgust at the French government's anti-Islam policies.

The Iranian students also called on the French and US nations to show reaction to their officials' insults to the Prophet of Islam.

'The current governing system over the world has came to its end and is on the verge of collapse and ongoing regional Islamic Awakening and social unrests in the West is a sign of this fact,' the statement said.

Angry students in the Iranian capital staged a massive rally and burnt the US and Israeli flags in a show of protest against the sacrilege of Islam's Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) in a US-Israeli movie and a French magazine.

The Iranian students burnt the flags of US and Israel in front of the French embassy in Tehran to condemn the blasphemous movie and insulting cartoons published in a French magazine against Islam.

Hundreds of angry Iranian students who had gathered in front of the French mission in Tehran since the early hours of Thursday morning trampled the US and Israeli flags and chanted slogans 'Down with US', 'Dow with Britain,' 'Down with France' and 'Down with Israel.'

The blasphemous cartoons were published after an anti-Islam US-Israeli film drew condemnation from numerous countries including Afghanistan, Egypt, Libya, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Iran, Yemen, Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan, Morocco, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, etc.

In Iran, millions of Iranians in Tehran and other cities across the country held nationwide rallied in protest to the recent desecration of Islam.

The Iranian protesters chanted slogans such as 'Down with US' and 'Down with Israel' expressing their hatred at the US and the Zionist regime's anti-Islam policies.

Earlier, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei blamed the US and the Zionists for the sacrilege of Islam's Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) in a movie made by an American-Israeli man, and called on Washington to bring to justice the perpetrators of this blasphemous act.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Iran's supreme leader said the US and Zionists' hands can be seen behind the move, and said if Washington statesmen's claim that they are not involved in this sacrilege act against Islam and Islamic values, they should bring to justice those who have designed and orchestrated the move.

'Once again, the dirty hand of the enemies of Islam revealed its deep-rooted malice by insulting the Great Prophet [Mohammad] (PBUH) and with an insane and deplorable measure showed the fury of the evil Zionists at the daily-increasing radiance of Islam and Holy Qur'an in the present world,' Ayatollah Khamenei added.

He went on to say that 'behind this evil move is the antagonistic policies of the Zionists and the US and other heads of the global arrogance, who in their vain delusions want to knock down the Islamic sanctities from their lofty position in the eyes of the young generations in the world of Islam and to extinguish their religious sentiments. Had they not backed the previous links in this evil chain, namely the British blasphemous writer Salman Rushdie, a Danish cartoonist, and US pastors who burned the Holy Qur'an and had they not made orders for [production of] tens of anti-Islam movies to companies affiliated to the Zionist capitalists, things would not have lead to this great and unforgivable sin today.'

'The prime suspects in this crime are Zionism and the US. If the American politicians are honest that they had no role, then they must punish those who committed this heinous crime and their financial backers, who have wrenched the hearts of Muslim nations, in proportion to this massive crime,' Ayatollah Khamenei said.

'Muslim brothers and sisters must know that this desperate move by the enemies in the wake of the Islamic Awakening is a sign of the grandeur and importance of this uprising and heralds its increasing growth,' the Leader added.

The End

Speaking to a number of senior Parliament members, the clergyman added that while protests against anti-Islam film made in the US are still underway, publication of such cartoons in France is surprising and questionable. Grand Ayatollah pointed to insulting cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) published in the French magazine and said that it is necessary to expelled the French ambassador from the country and the French embassy be closed. International institutions should guarantee full respect to sanctities of divine religions by ratifying preventive measures, protesters gathering in front of French embassy said in a statement released here on Thursday. The protesters called for unity among Muslims and respect for the holy prophet of Islam (PBUH), and expressed disgust at the French government's anti-Islam policies. The Iranian students also called on the French and US nations to show reaction to their officials' insults to the Prophet of Islam. 'The current governing system over the world has came to its end and is on the verge of collapse and ongoing regional Islamic Awakening and social unrests in the West is a sign of this fact,' the statement said. Angry students in the Iranian capital staged a massive rally and burnt the US and Israeli flags in a show of protest against the sacrilege of Islam's Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) in a US-Israeli movie and a French magazine. The Iranian students burnt the flags of US and Israel in front of the French embassy in Tehran to condemn the blasphemous movie and insulting cartoons published in a French magazine against Islam. Hundreds of angry Iranian students who had gathered in front of the French mission in Tehran since the early hours of Thursday morning trampled the US and Israeli flags and chanted slogans 'Down with US', 'Dow with Britain,' 'Down with France' and 'Down with Israel.' The blasphemous cartoons were published after an anti-Islam US-Israeli film drew condemnation from numerous countries including Afghanistan, Egypt, Libya, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Iran, Yemen, Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan, Morocco, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, etc. In Iran, millions of Iranians in Tehran and other cities across the country held nationwide rallied in protest to the recent desecration of Islam. The Iranian protesters chanted slogans such as 'Down with US' and 'Down with Israel' expressing their hatred at the US and the Zionist regime's anti-Islam policies. Earlier, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei blamed the US and the Zionists for the sacrilege of Islam's Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) in a movie made by an American-Israeli man, and called on Washington to bring to justice the perpetrators of this blasphemous act. In a statement issued on Thursday, Iran's supreme leader said the US and Zionists' hands can be seen behind the move, and said if Washington statesmen's claim that they are not involved in this sacrilege act against Islam and Islamic values, they should bring to justice those who have designed and orchestrated the move. 'Once again, the dirty hand of the enemies of Islam revealed its deep-rooted malice by insulting the Great Prophet [Mohammad] (PBUH) and with an insane and deplorable measure showed the fury of the evil Zionists at the daily-increasing radiance of Islam and Holy Qur'an in the present world,' Ayatollah Khamenei added. He went on to say that 'behind this evil move is the antagonistic policies of the Zionists and the US and other heads of the global arrogance, who in their vain delusions want to knock down the Islamic sanctities from their lofty position in the eyes of the young generations in the world of Islam and to extinguish their religious sentiments. Had they not backed the previous links in this evil chain, namely the British blasphemous writer Salman Rushdie, a Danish cartoonist, and US pastors who burned the Holy Qur'an and had they not made orders for [production of] tens of anti-Islam movies to companies affiliated to the Zionist capitalists, things would not have lead to this great and unforgivable sin today.' 'The prime suspects in this crime are Zionism and the US. If the American politicians are honest that they had no role, then they must punish those who committed this heinous crime and their financial backers, who have wrenched the hearts of Muslim nations, in proportion to this massive crime,' Ayatollah Khamenei said. 'Muslim brothers and sisters must know that this desperate move by the enemies in the wake of the Islamic Awakening is a sign of the grandeur and importance of this uprising and heralds its increasing growth,' the Leader added. The End