More than 50,000 people have joined an Anti-France demonstration in Bangladesh, one of the largest yet ever held within the country.
Protestors condemned France and President Emmanuel Macron over their disrespect to Islam and supporting the sacrilegious acts against it.
Protesters marched toward the French embassy in Dhaka this weekbut were repelled by security and local police. The group protested Macron's stance on giving citizens the right to publish cartoon depictions of the Prophet Mohammed, a sin under Islam that is punishable by death.
Macron repeatedly stood firm in his stance to protect the right to free speech, worsening the situation by commenting that Islam was in a state of "crisis" over the issue. Depictions of the Prophet published by French magazine Charlie Hebdo have already caused numerous deaths in the country with the latest one being the beheading of a French free speech teacher last month.
The rally in Bangladesh, which continued Tuesday, started at the country's largest Mosque in its capital. Protesters marched more than 2 kilometers - ignoring social distance policies - carrying effigies of Macron, banners, and signs calling on France to reverse its course and the boycott of French products.
Police officials estimate that more than 50,000 people had joined the rally, while organizers claimed that more than 100,000 people had signed up. At one point in the rally, protesters burned an effigy of the French president.
Local law enforcement agents placed barricades and barbed wires to control the demonstration from spilling into public areas, including the city's embassy district. Officers had so far not reported any violence and the rally had concluded without any trouble.
Bangladesh's government has not yet made any official comments on the issue. Hefazat-i-Islam, one of the country's largest Muslim political groups, has called on the government to publicly condemn France and Macron's actions.
During an interview earlier in the week, Macron said that France is committed to its fight against "radical Islam," which considers a threat to all people, particularly Muslims. He said that France is unwilling to renounce or change its laws to ban people from creating caricatures.
