Palestinian preachers stage rally in West Bank to condemn French insults against Islam

Palestinian preachers staged a rally in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday to protest French insults against Islam and the Prophet Muhammad.

Dozens of people participated in the protest outside the headquarters of the Ministry of Religious Endowments in the city of Al-Bireh.

"We follow with great dismay the continued publication of offensive caricatures of the Prophet, and we firmly reject any kind of insult against Prophet Muhammad and all the prophets," the ministry said in a statement.

The statement continued: "These insults are a direct assault on our honorable Messenger, our religion and our faith".

The ministry warned that a repetition of such insults would ignite hatred and hostility and serve to destroy the culture of tolerance and peace among peoples.

On Oct. 2, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a controversial plan to tackle what he calls "Islamic separatism" in France, claiming that the faith of Islam is in "crisis" all over the world and promising to "free Islam in France from foreign influences".

Last week, Macron defended blasphemous cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, saying France would "not give up our cartoons" after the brutal murder of high school teacher Samuel Paty, who showed provocative caricatures in a class.

The past few days have witnessed the republication of cartoons insulting Prophet Muhammad in France which sparking a wave of anger and protests across the Islamic world and campaigns have been launched in some countries to boycott French products.