VANCOUVER – The aunt of a young Syrian boy who drowned last year while crossing the Mediterranean says an inflammatory cartoon showcasing her nephew’s lifeless body is “disgusting.”
Tima Kurdi took to Twitter to criticize the controversial French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo for its depiction of two-year-old Alan Kurdi.
The cartoon asks in French what would have become of Alan had he grown up and shows two men running after screaming women with their hands outstretched above a caption that says bum grabbers in Germany.
The drawing is a reference to a series of sex attacks allegedly committed by a group of newly arrived migrants in Cologne, Germany, on New Year’s Eve.
The cartoon comes a year after gunmen stormed Charlie Hebdo‘s offices in Paris and killed 12 people over the newspaper’s incendiary depictions of the Muslim prophet Muhammad.
Kurdi told Global News the cartoon brings back the pain, as her family is trying to move on with their lives.
In September, Charlie Hebdo came under fire for a caricature that showed three-year-old Kurdi face down in the tide with the caption: “So close to the goal…” Off to the side, a billboard resembling a McDonald’s sign reads: “Promo! 2 kids menus for the price of one,” prompting online outrage.
Online backlash over controversial cartoon
A number of Twitter users expressed their indignation with the cartoon online.
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