Muslim-majority countries including Syria, have seen street protests in a backlash over French President Emmanuel Macron’s attack on Islam, and the projecting of caricatures depicting the holy Prophet Muhammed (Peace be Upon Him) onto government buildings in France.

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan questioned Macron’s mental health, while Muslims in several countries have begun a boycott of all French products ranging from shampoos to motor vehicles. Al Jazeerah reports that in Erdogan’s second scathing criticism against Macron in two days, he said that the French president had “lost his mind”, resulting in France’s foreign minister recalling his country’s ambassador to Ankara.

The provocative projection of the caricatures onto buildings last Friday, followed the the beheading of a teacher who had shown them to his class of 13-year-old’s in a lesson on so called ‘freedom of speech.’ The offensive cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be Upon Him) had previously been twice published by the French Charlie Hebdo magazine.

Meanwhile, earlier in October, Macron described Islam as a religion “in crisis” worldwide. He also vowed to present a bill in December to bolster a law officially separating the church and the state.

Since Friday’s projections, there has been a social media storm across the world, condemning Macron’s statements and actions, under the hashtags #BoycottFrenchProducts and #Islam and #NeverTheProphet in Arabic, according to Al Jazeerah.

World leaders have been drawn in as the situation in France escalates. Pakistan ‘s Foreign Ministry on Monday summoned the French ambassador in Islamabad to complain about Macron’s comments. Al Jazeerah further reports that Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan wrote a letter to Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg for a ban to be placed on Islamophobic content, like the website’s measures against Holocaust deniers.

In Tripoli, in Libya, people set fire to French flags and stamped on pictures of Macron. In the Gaza Strip, Palestinians burned portraits of Macron, offended at the insulting way the Prophet  Mohammed (Peace be Upon Him) was being treated by France. In Lebanon, Hezbollah condemned the “deliberate insult” to the Prophet. The continued publication of the caricatures was condemned by Morocco ‘s foreign ministry, while Jordanian Minister Mohammed al-Khalayleh said that “insulting” prophets was “a crime that encourages violence.” Many other countries also expressed their displeasure at the brazenness and arrogance of France’s leadership.

Despite worldwide outrage, the French president found support with some leaders of the European community. Al-Jazeera reports that European Commission Vice President Margaritis Schinas, responding to President Erdogan’s reports, tweeted: “Sorry to disappoint you but this is our way of life as defined in our Treaty. The European Way of Life.”

Umm Muhammed Umar