Charlie Hebdo slammed for mocking Türkiye earthquake victims

French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo has sparked condemnation over a cartoon in which they mock the victims of two deadly earthquakes in Türkiye.

The "Cartoon of the Day" was shared on Twitter hours after the earthquake on Monday showing damaged buildings, a toppled car and hills of debris. 

"Earthquake in Türkiye. (Didn't) even need to send tanks," the drawing said.

The disaster that occurred in 10 provinces of the country resulted in more than 3000 people dead and over 20,000 injured, according to Türkiye's disaster agency AFAD. 

A 7.7 magnitude tremor struck the Pazarcik district of Kahramanmaras province in the early hours of the day. About nine hours later, a 7.6 magnitude quake centered in Kahramanmaras’ Elbistan district rocked the region, affecting several other provinces.

The earthquakes were also felt in Lebanon and Syria causing severe losses. 

An academic study entitled "Examination of Islamophobia in the Case of Cartoons Shared in Charlie Hebdo Magazine Twitter Account", published in 2018, examined some cartoons of the magazine shared between August 13, 2009, and October 15, 2018 and found that 38 of 6123 tweets shared on the Charlie Hebdo magazine’s Twitter account were anti-Muslim. 

According to their analysis, the cartoons shared by the magazine represented Islam as a religion of deviance and terrorism.

The magazine has repeatedly published caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed, dead child migrants, virus victims, popes, Jewish leaders as well as cartoons insulting Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2020.

Reaction from social media

Many people, including public figures, took to social media condemning the recent drawings.

"Modern barbarians! Drown in your anger and hatred,” Türkiye's presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalın, said on Twitter. 

Abdurrahim Boynukalın, a Turkish politician and London representative of the AK Party says "they show no limits in their pursuit of controversy". 

READ MORE: Here's how to help Türkiye and Syria earthquake victims

Elizabete Aunina, a writer, criticised the magazine, saying "I am all for clever jokes and dark humor, but this just isn't it". 

Some called the magazine a “disgrace”.

President Erdogan has declared a three-month state of emergency in 10 of the country’s provinces on Tuesday as rescue efforts continue. The scope of the disaster is overwhelming as thousands of buildings are in rubble with a large number of people still entrapped underneath. 

READ MORE: Is France’s racism problem rooted in denial and discrimination?