Prophet Muhammad cartoons 'an insult to Muslims and Christians alike', French archbishop says

The Archbishop of Toulouse Robert Le Gall said he opposed the publishing of caricatures insulting Islam’s Prophet Muhammad, saying “there are limits to freedom of speech”.

“These are considered an insult to Muslims and Christians alike and they should not be spread further. We all see their results,” he said in comments to France Bleu radio station, according to an Arabi21 report.

“There are limits to freedom of expression and we should realise that we do not have the right to insult religions,” he added.

Anger has erupted in the Islamic world over French President Emmanuel Macron's defence earlier this month of the right to publish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed, prompting denunciations from several Muslim countries.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has accused the French president of attacking the Muslim faith and urged Muslim countries to work together to counter what he called growing Islamophobia in Europe.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been vocal against France for its Islamophobia, vowed to take "legal and diplomatic action" over another Charlie Hebdo cartoon that depicted Erdogan looking up a woman's skirt while drinking beer in his underpants. 

Turkey's NTV broadcaster said Ankara had summoned a senior diplomat from the French embassy.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called Macron's defence of cartoons depicting the Prophet a "stupid act" and an "insult" to those who voted for him. 

Read more: Instagram suspends Iranian supreme leader Khamenei's account after anti-Macron post

On Friday, the head of Lebanon's Shia movement Hezbollah urged France to back down from its defence of cartoons..

"Do not allow this mockery, this aggression... to continue, and the whole world will stand with you," Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said.

"French authorities instead of fixing the issue... became stubborn about this being freedom of expression," saying "'we want to continue with satirical cartoons'," Nasrallah added.

"You need to think about correcting this mistake.”

Meanwhile, protests erupted across the Middle East and South Asia while calls to boycott French products have grown popular.

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