Thousands of Muslims in Indonesia protested outside the French embassy on Monday in response to recent anti-Islamist actions taken by French President Emmanuel Macron, Reuters reported.
Protesters in Jakarta demanded that the French ambassador to the world’s largest Muslim-majority country be immediately expelled, Reuters reports. Banners depicting Macron as the devil and calling him “the real terrorist” filled the streets, per Reuters. (RELATED: New Charlie Hebdo Cartoon Mocking Erdogan Draws Intense Backlash From Turkish Leaders)
Macron has been sharply critical of Islamism in light of recent terrorist attacks in France. A Tunisian migrant yelling “Allahu akbar” killed three women at a church in Nice, beheading one, and weeks before that, French school teacher Samuel Paty was beheaded, allegedly for showing cartoons mocking the Prophet Mohammad to his students.
Macron said he understands Muslims’ fury over cartoons mocking the Prophet Muhammad but defended France’s ‘freedom to speak, to write, to think, to draw’ https://t.co/TPUfPRUVg2 via @businessinsider
— Anthony L. Fisher (@anthonyLfisher) November 2, 2020
Macron has taken significant steps to crack down on the threat of radical Islamism after the attacks, and many raids and arrests have been carried out in the aftermath. His rhetoric toward Islam in recent weeks has sparked outcry from Muslims across the world, including leaders like Erdogan of Turkey, who has called for a boycott of French goods. Macron has defended the secular values of France, including free speech, but critics like Indonesian President Joko Widodo say his comments have “hurt the unity of Muslims everywhere,” per Reuters.