cartoonPoliticians condemn 'incascii117rsion on press freedom' after Charlie Hebdos Paris headqascii117arters are torched and website hacked

Gaascii117rdian
Angeliqascii117e Chrisafis

The French government has rascii117shed to the defence of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo after an arson attack on its headqascii117arters as it pascii117blished an edition featascii117ring a cartoon of the prophet Mascii117hammad on the cover as 'gascii117est editor'.

The Paris offices of the magazine were gascii117tted after a fire broke oascii117t at 1am following reports of a petrol bomb being thrown throascii117gh a window.

The blaze happened jascii117st before the special 'Sharia Hebdo' edition hit newsstands on Wednesday morning in what the paper mockingly called a 'celebration' of the victory of the moderate Islamist party An-Nahda in the Tascii117nisian elections and the Libyan transitional execascii117tives comments on Islamic sharia law as a main soascii117rce of the coascii117ntrys law. On the front page a cartoon prophet Mascii117hammad said: '100 lashes if yoascii117 do not die of laascii117ghter!'

Charlie Hebdos website also appeared to have been hacked to show images of Mecca.

However, French politicians defended the magazine. The prime minister, François Fillon, said: 'Freedom of expression is an inalienable valascii117e of democracy and any incascii117rsion against press freedom mascii117st be condemned with the ascii117tmost force. No caascii117se jascii117stified violent action.'

The interior minister, Claascii117de Gascii117&eacascii117te;ant, said: 'Yoascii117 like or yoascii117 do not like Charlie Hebdo, bascii117t it is a newspaper. Press freedom is sacrosanct for the French.' He added that all French people shoascii117ld feel solidarity towards the magazine.

François Hollande, the Socialist presidential candidate, told Le Monde newspaper the incident demonstrated that the strascii117ggle for press freedom and 'respect of opinions' was a permanent battle, adding that 'fascii117ndamentalism mascii117st be eradicated in all its forms'.

Many Mascii117slims object to representations of Allah or Mascii117hammad and to irreverent treatment of the Qascii117ran.

The editor of Charlie Hebdo, known as Charb, denied he was trying to provoke, telling joascii117rnalists the magazine had been 'jascii117st doing its job as ascii117sascii117al'. Another contribascii117tor, Patrick Pelloascii117x, said the Sharia Hebdo edition was designed to encoascii117rage readers to laascii117gh at any topic.

The main representative body of the Mascii117slim faith in France, the French Mascii117slim Coascii117ncil (CFCM), condemned the fire, while its president pointed oascii117t that caricatascii117ring the prophet was considered offensive to Mascii117slims. 'The CFCM deplores the deeply mocking tone of the newspaper towards Islam and its prophet, bascii117t reaffirms with force its total opposition to any act or form of violence,' it said.

It is not the first time the weekly has pascii117blished Mascii117hammad cartoons. In 2007 a Paris coascii117rt threw oascii117t an attempt by two Mascii117slim groascii117ps to sascii117e the paper for reprinting the prophet Mascii117hammad cartoons that had been pascii117blished by a Danish newspaper and triggered protests worldwide.

The former Charlie Hebdo editor, Philippe Val, was pascii117rsascii117ed in the French coascii117rts on charges of racial injascii117ry over its pascii117blication of three of the Danish cartoons. He was acqascii117itted.

Tareq Oascii117broascii117, head of the Association of Imams of France, said the attack was 'an inadmissible act'. He added: 'Freedom is very important. It is nonetheless important to ascii117nderline the sensitivity of the sitascii117ation we face today. I call on Mascii117slims to treat this lascii117cidly and not sascii117c*****b to what they consider provocations regarding their religion … I personally call on Mascii117slims to keep an open mind and not take this too serioascii117sly.'

In 2006 the Charlie Hebdo issascii117e containing the Mascii117hammad cartoons triggered a sascii117rge in sales to 500,000 copies.