By Abdus Sattar
Ghazali
October 26,
2020
The General
Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has condemned
continued attacks and incitement against Muslim sentiment and insults of
Prophet Muhammad, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.
A statement
by the 57-member pan-Islamic OIC criticized the “discourse from certain French
politicians, which it deems to be harmful to the Muslim-French relations,
hate-mongering and only serving partisan political interests.”
It said the
OIC “will always condemn practices of blasphemy and of insulting Prophets of
Islam, Christianity and Judaism” as it condemned any crime committed in the
name of religion.
The
statement rejected the incitement against Islam, its symbols and linking Islam
and Muslims with terrorism.
According
to AA, the OIC statement also denounced the killing of French teacher Samuel
Paty, who was decapitated on October 16 in a Paris suburb.
French
teacher Samuel Paty, who had shown students cartoons of the Prophet Muhammed,
was beheaded outside his school. The man suspected of the beheading was an
18-year-old Moscow-born Chechnyan. The assailant was shot by police and later
died of his injuries.
Erdoğan Says Macron Needs ‘Mental Treatment’
President
Macron’s anti-Islam rhetoric sparked a diplomatic crisis between France and
Turkey when France recalled its ambassador from Ankara after Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Saturday Macron needs “mental treatment” because of
his hostility toward Islam.
“What is
Macron’s problem with Islam and Muslims? He needs mental health treatment,”
Erdoğan said at the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) congress in
central Kayseri province. “What can be said to a head of state that treats
millions of members of a religious minority in his country this way? First of
all, (he needs) mental check,” Erdoğan added.
In
response, a French presidential official told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that
Paris was recalling its envoy to Ankara for consultations. Ambassador Herve
Magro would meet Macron to discuss the situation, the official said.
France
recently launched an extensive witch hunt against the Muslim community
following Macron calling Islam a problematic religion that needs to be
contained. Many nongovernmental organizations and mosques have been shut down
in recent weeks, while assaults against Muslims have peaked.
Macron this
month described Islam as a religion “in crisis” worldwide and said the
government would present a bill in December to strengthen a 1905 law that
officially separated church and state in France. He announced stricter
oversight of schooling and better control over foreign funding of mosques.
Tellingly,
James McAuley of The Washington Post wrote on Oct 23: Instead of addressing the
alienation of French Muslims, especially in France’s exurban ghettos, or
banlieues — which experts broadly agree is the root cause that leaves some
susceptible to radicalization and violence — the government aims to influence
the practice of a 1,400-year-old faith, one with almost 2 billion peaceful
followers around the world, including tens of millions in the West.
Days after
beheaded teacher Samuel Paty’s killing, two female attackers stabbed two Muslim
women in headscarves and called them “dirty Arabs” as they walked near the
Eiffel Tower. “There is a hysterical climate,” according to Rachid Benzine, a
French political scientist.
Arabs Condemn Macron’s Remarks About Islam
Several
Arab countries have condemned the French incitement against the Islam and the
Prophet of Islam, warning that these repeated insults fuel hatred among the
peoples.
In a
statement, the Secretary General of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council
(GCC) Nayef al-Hajraf described Macron’s statements against Islam as
“irresponsible” and “cause to spread the culture of hatred among the peoples”.
“Such
[French statements] come out at a time when efforts are underway to enhance
tolerance and dialogue between cultures and religions,” al-Hajraf said in a
statement.
The GCC
includes Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman.
Kuwait’s
Foreign Ministry also expressed resentment at the French republication of the
anti-prophet cartoons. A ministry statement warned that these insults will “ignite
the spirit of hatred, violence and enmity, and jeopardize the international
community’s efforts to spread the culture of tolerance and peace among peoples
of the world”.
Pakistan Premier Denounces Macron’s
‘Encouragement Of Islamophobia’
Prime Minister
of Pakistan Imran Khan on Sunday denounced what he called was “encouragement of
Islamophobia” by French President Emmanuel Macron, saying the European leader
had chosen to “deliberately provoke” Muslims, including his own citizens.
In a series
of tweets, the premier said that the sign of a leader was that he united
people, like former South African president Nelson Mandela. “This is a time
when President Macron could have put [a] healing touch and denied space to
extremists rather than creating further polarization and marginalization that
inevitably leads to radicalization,” he said.
The premier
regretted that the French president had instead chosen to encourage
Islamophobia by “attacking Islam rather than the terrorists who carry out
violence, be it Muslims, White Supremacists or Nazi ideologists”.
Arab Trade Groups Boycott French Products Over
Insults
Several
Arab trade groups have announced their boycott of French products in response
to incitements against the Islam and insulting statements against Prophet
Muhammad, Turkish newspaper Yanishafak reported Monday.
Arab
activists also launched several social media campaigns for the boycott of all
French products, using several hashtags as (#boycottfrance
#boycott_French_products #ProphetMuhammad).
In Kuwait,
several trade groups such as Alnaeem Cooperative Society, the Suburb Afternoon
Association, Eqaila Cooperative Society and Saad Al Abdallah City Cooperative
Society. The three groups published photos showing French products being
removed from their shelves.
In Qatar,
Alwajba Dairy Company and Almeera Consumer Goods Company said they will boycott
the French products and will provide other alternatives.
Qatar
University also joined the boycott campaign, announcing that it decided to
postpone the French Cultural Week in protest of the anti-Islam insults.
“Any
denigration or violation of the Islamic beliefs, sanctities and symbols are
absolutely rejected,” the university said in a statement. “These insults harm
the universal human values and the high ethical principles of all societies,”
it added on Twitter.
Not
surprisingly, France called on Arab countries on Sunday to end calls to boycott
French products. “These calls for boycott and attacks on our country pushed by
a radical minority are without merit and must be stopped immediately,” French
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll said in a statement.
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Abdus Sattar Ghazali is the Chief Editor of the
Journal of America
Original Headline: The Muslim World denounces
French President’s remarks against Islam, its prophet
Source: The Counter Current
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-west/macron’s-remarks-islam-sparks-diplomatic/d/123354
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