Mohammad Caricature Reprinted by Charlie Hebdo

French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo is set to republish the controversial cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed to mark the start of the terror trial this week.

On January 7, 2015, Charlie Hebdo became the target of a massacre by Islamist gunmen, killing 12 people including several renowned cartoonists. The perpetrators were killed in the massacre leaving behind 14 accomplices in the attack, who are set to go on trial in Paris today.

“We will never lie down. We will never give up,” director Laurent “Riss” Sourisseau wrote in an editorial to go with the cartoons in the latest edition.

“The hatred that struck us is still there and, since 2015, it has taken the time to mutate, to change its appearance, to go unnoticed and to quietly continue its ruthless crusade,” he said.

The editorial team wrote that now was the right time to republish the cartoons and “essential” as the trial opens.

“We have often been asked since January 2015 to print other caricatures of Mohammed,” it said.

“We have always refused to do so, not because it is prohibited — the law allows us to do so — but because there was a need for a good reason to do it, a reason which has meaning and which brings something to the debate.”

The former director of Charlie Hebdo, Philippe Val, said, it’s a “remarkable idea” for defending the freedom of thought and expression in the face of “terror”

The trial of 14 accomplices begins on Wednesday morning after being delayed for several months. They are accused of providing logistical support to the killers.

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By Team RSP