MK Ahmed Tibi (Joint List) on Tuesday strongly condemned what he called the "Islamophobic" policies of French President Emmanuel Macron and the screening of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed on government buildings in France.
In a Facebook post in Arabic, Tibi wrote that the cartoons depicting Mohammed are not freedom of expression but rather a violation of the symbols and foundations of the religious faith of Islam and are therefore invalid.
Tibi claimed that he believes in freedom of expression but also in freedom of religious belief and non-violation of religious symbols.
He noted that the recent beheading of a French teacher by a young Chechen was wrong and indecent, and does not represent the religion of Islam but rather the opposite, as it distorts the image of Islam and gives the enemies of Islam a chance to tarnish its image.
Tibi noted that Macron's policies against what he calls radical Islam, his “racist” remarks against Islam and the closure of hundreds of mosques threaten security in France, and will make millions of Muslim immigrants feel persecuted for their religion and Islamic faith.
The phrase "radical Islam" used by Macron, Tibi said, is the same term used by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in his "inciting" speeches.
Tibi argued that there is no extremist Islam, extremist Christianity or extremist Judaism, but extremist Jews, extremist Christians and extremist Muslims.
He added that not only did Macron not condemn the illustrations that offend the honor of the Prophet Mohammed, he projected them on government buildings.
Tibi stressed that "we oppose extremism whether it is a Muslim ISIS member, a Kahanist Jewish settler or the Christian Ku Klux Klan group. We are not against France but rather against the positions of Macron and Marine Le Pen, the leader of the racist opposition.”