Egyptians offer compassion following terrorist attacks in France

World Today

Egyptians are condemning the deadly terror attack on French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo that killed 12 people this week. It was a far different reaction eight years ago, when many Egyptians protested Charlie Hebdo’s re-publication of Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. CCTV’s Adel el Mahrouky reported this story from Cairo.

On behalf of his country, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, sent condolences to the families of the victims. El-Sisi also sent his sympathies to French President Francois Hollande and noted that terrorism must be stopped.

“Terrorism is an international phenomenon that should be faced and terminated through joint international effort,” el-Sisi said.

Charlie Hebdo is viewed in Egypt as the magazine that lampoons religion and prophets and the magazine has few fans in the Arab world. However while some Egyptians blamed the publication, others condemned the violence.

“No one can deny it. What happened is terrorism,” Mohamd Abo Bakr, an Islamic priest said. “As Muslims, we cannot accept that. Regardless of all the insults made by this newspaper, to us and our prophet, they don’t deserve to die this way.”

Many Muslims also fear a backlash for the violence that was committed in the name of the religion.

“We don’t like these incidents, because in the end, it ruins our image as Muslims and Arabs,” Cairo resident Mohamed Abdel Moniem said. “We don’t like it when they say all Arabs are like this.”

Despite some public condemnations, support for freedom of expression is not widespread in Egypt. The phrase “Je ne suis pas Charlie,” or “I am not Charlie” is a message many have been using on social media to show they do not support Charlie Hebdo content.


U.K. residents support France following terror attacks; step up domestic security

Islam is the second largest religion in the U.K. according to the 2011 census. Like France, the U.K. is a multicultural society that has been deeply affected by the tragic events this week. CCTV’s Richard Bestic reported this story from London.

Religious leaders at the West London Mosque have condemned the Paris massacre, regardless of sensitivities to the depiction of images of the Prophet Muhammad.

Members of the British Parliament also held a moment of silence for the victims of the attack.

Security in Britain is already at its second highest level of ‘severe’, meaning an attack is regarded as likely. The U.K.’s intelligence agencies have also revised their estimate of the number of British Jihadists fighting in Syria and Iraq from five to 600.

“Steps are taken in line with that to make sure that we’re always taking every precaution that we can to keep our country safe, and that means actions by the security services and by the police,” U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron said.

Britain’s domestic intelligence service has warned of a plot to massacre civilians in Britain and other western countries. The agency’s director-general said the threat is from a resurgent al-Qaida..

However, the head of MI5, Britain’s domestic intelligence agency, warned of a possible imminent attack from Syria. In response, the government will give $150 million to both MI6 and MI5 to target lone wolf Jihadists like those in Paris.