Pakistan’s police fire teargas at demonstrators protesting French cartoons of Prophet
Pakistani police on Friday briefly fired tear gas at protesters who broke through security blockades in Islamabad in a failed attempt to demonstrate at the French Embassy against the printing of images depicting the Prophet Mohammad.
No one was injured and protesters later moved back towards a gathering spot originally agreed with the authorities, police said.
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Muslims around the world have protested against France and President Emmanuel Macron, who has vowed to stand firm against what he described as attacks on French values and freedom of expression by radical Islamists.
Around 3,000 protesters gathered in Islamabad, about half a km (less than a mile) from the fortified diplomatic enclave where the French Embassy is, according to a Reuters witness.
Pakistani protesters return teargas shells during a demonstration in Islamabad on October 30, 2020, following French President Emmanuel Macron's comments over the Prophet Mohammed caricatures. (AFP)
Roads leading to the enclave were blocked using shipping containers and barbed wire and were guarded by riot police, but protesters managed to climb over the blockades - prompting police to fire teargas.
"We needed to fire teargas shells when the protesters tried to violate their agreement," police official Amanullah Niazi said, referring to an agreement with protest leaders that they would not progress beyond a certain point.
The protest was organized by a traders' association, which has already announced that it would take French products off shelves across the country, and came on the day Pakistan is celebrating the birthday of Prophet Muhammad.
Protests and gatherings marking the occasion were also held in the cities of Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar.
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