Macron urges Iran to resume nuclear talks in call with President Pezeshkian
French President Emmanuel Macron said he held a phone conversation with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday.He said in a post on X that his message was for a return to the negotiating table to address ballistic and nuclear issues, and for the resumption of the IAEA's work in Iran.- EndsMust Watch
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First Post
17 minutes ago
- First Post
Turkey protests: Why Prophet Muhammad cartoons are hurtful to Muslims
A cartoon of Prophet Muhammad led to violent protests in Turkey's Istanbul on Monday, with protesters pelting stones and chanting slogans. The incident begs the question: Why do Muslims get offended by such caricatures? Are they truly blasphemous? read more Islamist protesters clash with Turkish anti riot police officers as they gather to protest LeMan cartoon magazine in Istanbul. Clashes erupted in Istanbul on Monday with police firing rubber bullets and tear gas to break up an angry mob after allegations that a satirical magazine had published a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad. AFP Turkey's Istanbul once again witnessed violent clashes on Monday (June 30) with the police firing rubber bullets and teargas at an angry mob, which had come out on the streets to protest a satirical magazine's decision to publish images of Prophet Muhammad. Following the clashes, four employees — the editor-in-chief, the graphic designer, institutional director and cartoonist — of LeMan magazine have been arrested with Turkey's interior minister Ali Yerlikaya calling the drawing 'shameless', while Yilmaz Tunc, the justice minister said 'No freedom grants the right to make the sacred values of a belief a subject of humour in an ugly way.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The incident evokes memories of the 2015 Charlie Hebdo incident in France when two armed gunmen stormed the offices of the French satirical magazine and killed 12 people for its depiction of Prophet Muhammad. But why is it that drawing images — whether in jest — of Prophet Muhammad is an issue that often causes offense and results in protests and violence? We examine this. Turkey on edge over Prophet Muhammad cartoon On Monday (June 30), an angry mob gathered outside the office of LeMan magazine in Istanbul, pelting stones and chanting slogans, angered over a cartoon depicting Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Moses exchanging greetings in mid-air as missiles rain down from the sky. The image showed the two characters under bombardment, saying, 'Salam aleikum, I'm Mohammed,' says one shaking hands with the other who replies, 'Aleikum salam, I'm Musa.' Following the protests, four of the employees of the magazine were arrested on grounds it had published a cartoon which 'publicly insulted religious values'. 'The chief public prosecutor's office has launched an investigation into the publication of a cartoon in the June 26, 2025 issue of LeMan magazine that publicly insults religious values, and arrest warrants have been issued for those involved,' the prosecutor's office said. Islamist protesters clash with Turkish anti riot police officers as they gather to protest the depiction of Prophet Muhammad by LeMan cartoon magazine in Istanbul. AFP The country's interior minister, Ali Yerlikaya, also condemned the magazine editors for the cartoon, calling it a provocation and said those 'who dare to do this will be held accountable before the law.' He added that said the cartoon was not protected by freedom of expression or freedom of speech. Fahrettin Altun, the head communications for the Turkish Presidency, also told CNN that the cartoon was a 'vile attack on our beliefs and values.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD However, LeMan, which is a weekly political satire magazine, has defended its cartoon, saying it was not a depiction of the Islamic prophet. Its editor, Tuncay Akgun, told AFP that the image had been misinterpreted and was 'not a caricature of Prophet Muhammad.' 'In this work, the name of a Muslim who was killed in the bombardments of Israel is fictionalised as Mohammed. More than 200 million people in the Islamic world are named Mohammed,' he said, saying it had 'nothing to do with Prophet Muhammad'. 'We would never take such a risk.' Moreover, the magazine defended the cartoon and said it had been deliberately misinterpreted to cause a provocation. 'The cartoonist wanted to portray the righteousness of the oppressed Muslim people by depicting a Muslim killed by Israel, he never intended to belittle religious values,' it said. Bu konuda yayın yapanlara uyarı : BU KARİATÜR bir HZ. MUHAMMED (SAV) KARİKATÜRÜ DEĞİLDİR. Eserde İsrail'in bombardımanlarında katledilen bir müslümanın adı Muhammed olarak kurgulanmıştır. İslam dünyasında 200 milyondan fazla kişinin adı Muhammed'tir. Eserde Hz Muhammed'e hiçbir — LeMan (@lemandergisi) June 30, 2025 STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD When Prophet Muhammad cartoons have caused an uproar But the Turkey incident isn't a lone incident when a depiction or caricature of Prophet Muhammad has resulted in protests or violence. The most unfortunate incident would be that of brothers, Said and Cherif Kouachi, barging into the offices of Charlie Hebdo magazine in France on January 7, 2015 and killing 12 people for their depiction of Prophet Muhammad. Incidentally, Charlie Hebdo's offices had been burned in an apparent arson attack in November 2011 after it published its issue with the Prophet Muhammad as 'editor-in-chief'. He was depicted on the front page saying: '100 lashes if you don't die of laughter'. There's also the September 2005 instance when Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published a series of cartoons, some depicting the Prophet Muhammad as a terrorist with a bomb. Protesters chant slogans and hold signs against France and the French President in Istanbul , during a protest against the reprinting of the cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad by the French magazine Charlie Hebdo. File image/AFP A cartoon on Prophet Muhammad also made big news in 2007 when a Swedish artist sketched the Islamic prophet's head on a dog's body. The caricature offended many Muslims. So much so, that the artist became the subject of death threats and the Al-Qaeda offered a $100,000 reward for his murder. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD And in October 2020, Samuel Paty, a teacher in Paris, was beheaded after using cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad during a lesson about freedom of speech. What Islam says on Prophet Muhammad cartoons But what exactly is the reason why Muslims are triggered by caricatures of the Islamic prophet? Many Muslims believe that the depiction of Prophet Muhammad is offensive and results to blasphemy. What does the Quran say about it? The Islamic holy book does not specifically prohibit images of Allah or the Prophet Muhammad. However, chapter 42, verse 11 of the Quran says: '[Allah is] the originator of the heavens and the earth… [there is] nothing like a likeness of Him.' Muslims interpret this as Allah cannot be captured in an image by human hand, such is his beauty and grandeur. To attempt such a thing is seen as an insult to Allah. Similarly, chapter 21, verses 52-54 of the Quran reads: '[Abraham] said to his father and his people: 'What are these images to whose worship you cleave?' They said: 'We found our fathers worshipping them.' He said: 'Certainly you have been, you and your fathers, in manifest error'.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD From this arises the Muslim belief that images can give rise to idolatry, which is prohibited in Islam. A man stands holding a sign reading 'I Love Mohammed' during a demonstration outside the French embassy headquarters in Iraq's capital Baghdad against Paris-based magazine Charlie Hebdo's decision to republish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. File image/AFP Many Islam experts also note that Prophet Muhammad is a revered figure and such cartoons or depictions can be seen as an attack on the religion itself. Dalia Mogahed, the Director of Research at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, told Vox that Muhammad is a beloved figure to Muslims, and 'it is a human impulse to want to protect what's sacred to you'. The researcher also equated the depiction of Prophet Muhammad to burning the US flag, saying that most Americans would see that act as an attack on their identity and on the country itself. Author and scholar Reza Aslan agrees with this analysis, adding that just as Americans view their national identity as sacred so do Muslims about their religious identity. Even Hayrettin Karaman, a retired professor of Islamic law, also concurs that Muslims take Prophet Muhammad to be a sensitive issue. In an AA report, he is quoted as saying, 'For Muslims, to depict the Prophet Muhammad is a kind of forgery or deceit. Because no portrait can represent the real one.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Experts also point to intent; they note that often the caricature of Prophet Muhammad is created to provoke. Reza Aslan in the Vox report said that media outlets that print such cartoons often do so to provoke an extreme response. 'I've had extensive conversations, for instance, with the editor of Jyllands Posten, who published the famous Muhammad cartoons,' Aslan recounted. 'And he says, without apology, that those cartoons were a deliberate attempt to poke a stick in the eye of Denmark's Muslim community. To rouse them, to essentially prove that 'unless you can put up with this, you don't belong in Denmark'.' But cartoonists, editors and other activists argue that it's not about hurting religious sentiments but about free speech. Which side of the debate are you on? With inputs from agencies
New Indian Express
37 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
Turkish police detain cartoonist over Prophet Muhammad caricature, sparking protests
ANKARA, Turkey: Turkish police on Monday detained a cartoonist over a caricature depicting the Prophet Muhammad, an act that also sparked an angry protest outside the Istanbul office of his satirical magazine, officials and reports said. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on X that Leman magazine's cartoonist was taken under custody for questioning. The minister also shared a video of the cartoonist — identified only by his initials DP — being taken into custody on a stairwell, with hands cuffed behind the back. Earlier, the country's justice minister said an investigation was launched into the magazine, citing possible charges of 'publicly insulting religious values.' A group of youths, reportedly belonging to an Islamist group, hurled stones at Leman's headquarters after it published a cartoon depicting Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Moses exchanging greetings in mid-air as missiles rain down from the sky. Yilmaz Tunc, the justice minister, said that cartoons or drawings depicting the Prophet harmed religious sensitivities and social harmony. 'No freedom grants the right to make the sacred values of a belief a subject of humor in an ugly way,' he wrote. The incident evoked memories of the 2015 Charlie Hebdo shootings in Paris, when two armed gunmen stormed the offices of the French satirical magazine known for its provocative cartoons, including depictions of the Prophet Muhammad. The attackers killed 12 people, including prominent cartoonists.
India.com
an hour ago
- India.com
Iran builds new secret nuclear facility, fools US and Israel, its not Natanz, Fordow, the name is..., located in...
New Delhi: Kuh means mountain or hill in Persian and Kolang means pickaxe or shovel. The Persian term Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La translates to 'a mountain that looks like a pickaxe.' While in English, it is referred to as Pickaxe Mountain. Not many people were aware of the term Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La, but it has come into the spotlight following the American attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities. Now several reports claim that the Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La is the part of the mountain in Iran where enriched uranium was secretly stored before the American strikes. Amid discussions about Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz, a new name has emerged — Kuh-e-Kolang Gaz-La or Pikax Mountain. Here in this article, we will tell you about the Pikax Mountain, where exactly is it located? What is its strategic significance for Iran? And what is the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) assessment of this nuclear site? According to a report by The Telegraph, when the Director General of the IAEA asked Iran what was happening beneath Pikax Mountain, Iran's response was blunt, sharp, and terse: 'It's none of your business.' Why is Kuh-e-Kolang Gaz La or Pickaxe Mountain in the news? The United States recently launched an attack on Iran's nuclear sites at Fordow and Natanz using B-2 stealth jets. According to the reports, the US dropped 30,000-pound bunker-busting bombs in the operation. President Donald Trump, while addressing the media from the White House, claimed that the strike had 'destroyed' Iran's nuclear program. However, the claims made by Donald Trump were questioned not only by US agencies but also by Iran. Iran asserted that its enriched uranium stockpiles remained safe. In fact, just before the American strike, a convoy of 16 trucks was spotted outside the Fordow nuclear plant. While talking to The Telegraph, a nuclear program expert from Iran said that the Iranian government had already transferred its highly enriched uranium to a secret location before the US bombardment. Reports suggest that the secret site could be Kuh-e-Kolang Gaz La or Pickaxe Mountain—meaning Iran's enriched uranium might be stored inside Pickaxe Mountain. It is worth noting that Tehran is believed to have hidden hundreds of such locations where advanced centrifuges are kept concealed. These centrifuges are capable of producing weapons-grade uranium needed for nuclear bombs. This information was provided by Seema Shine, a former Israeli military official who served for 30 years. All You Need To Know About Pickaxe Mountain? The new nuclear project—Pickaxe Mountain (also known as Kuh-e-Kolang Gaz La) in Iran is located about 225 kilometers south of Tehran. It lies approximately 90 miles (145 kilometers) south of Fordow The location is just a few minutes away from Natanz, Iran's key nuclear facility. In April this year, satellite images captured by Planet Labs revealed that Iran had been gradually excavating the area around Kuh-e-Kolang Gaz La / Pickaxe Mountain. The images confirmed its location just beyond the southern perimeter of Natanz. This facility, which is being developed under tight security and anti-aircraft protection, is guarded by Iran's elite IRGC commanders. It spans an area of about 2.7 square kilometers amid the arid central plateau of Iran. The discovery of construction at this site has raised global concerns, especially because of Iran's history of secrecy regarding its uranium enrichment programs—used ostensibly for energy, but with the potential to be weaponized. Four Entry Points, 100 Meters Underground According to an Associated Press (AP) report, satellite images analyzed by the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies reveal that four tunnels have been dug into the slope of the mountain. Two of these tunnels face east, and two face west. Each tunnel measures approximately 6 meters (20 feet) in width and 8 meters (26 feet) in height. The scale of the excavation can be understood by observing the large piles of displaced earth around the site. It is believed that Iran is possibly constructing a nuclear research facility at a depth of between 80 meters (260 feet) and 100 meters (328 feet) underground. This nuclear site being built under Kuh-e-Kolang Gaz La lies beneath a 1,608-meter-high mountain, making it significantly higher and deeper than Fordow, which sits at 960 meters above sea level. The facility is reportedly being built so deep that even the U.S.'s powerful GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs may struggle to destroy it.
