In Pakistan, several cities were the scene of demonstrations against France and "Charlie-Hebdo".

The mobilization follows the republication of the cartoons of Muhammad by the satirical weekly, in parallel with the opening of the trial of the January 2015 attacks.

Thousands of demonstrators marched in several cities in Pakistan on Friday against

Charlie Hebdo

and France after the weekly republished cartoons of Muhammad who had made him the target of jihadists, on the sidelines of the opening of the trial of the January attacks 2015. On Friday,

Charlie Hebdo

reported that the 200,000 copies with the controversial front page cartoons were sold out by Wednesday, the weekly's publication date, with another 200,000 copies being reprinted.

French Embassy in Pakistan calls for "avoid all displacement"

"We are ready to sacrifice our lives for the holiness of the prophet", "Expel the French ambassador" or even "Boycott French products", we could read on the signs during a march in Rawalpindi, a nearby garrison town to the capital Islamabad.

The French embassy in Pakistan had called on its nationals to "stay away from any gathering" and "avoid any displacement" on Friday.

"We must send a strong message to the French that this lack of respect for our beloved prophet will not be tolerated," said Muhammad Ansari, a participant in the demonstration in Lahore (East), organized by the extremist party Tehreek-e- Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), whose fight against blasphemy is the main political weapon.

No violence has so far been recorded during these rallies, which were held after Friday prayers.

Ridiculing or insulting Muhammad is punishable by death in Pakistan

In 2015, an AFP photographer was seriously wounded by gunshot in front of the French consulate in Karachi (South).

Blasphemy is a very sensitive issue in Pakistan, the second most populous Muslim country with nearly 220 million people, where even unproven allegations of offending Islam can lead to assassinations and lynchings.

The representation of the prophets is strictly prohibited by Sunni Islam.

Ridiculing or insulting Muhammad is punishable by death in some Muslim countries, including Pakistan.

The October 2018 acquittal of Christian Asia Bibi, who spent more than eight years on death row for blasphemy, which she has always denied, prompted violent marches across Pakistan under the leadership of the TLP .