Satire or blasphemy? Turkey arrests four LeMan magazine journalists over alleged cartoon on Prophet Muhammad

Four journalists from LeMan, a long-running Turkish satirical magazine, were detained by police on Monday (Jun 30) after a recent cartoon—interpreted by some as depicting Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Moses—sparked outrage. According to reports, one of the four individuals has been identified as cartoonist Dogan Pehlevan. The others have been identified as C.O a graphic designer, Z.A., the Editor-in-Chief of the magazine, and A. Y., the institutional director of the magazine. The cartoon drew strong condemnation from Türkiye government officials and religious conservatives who accused the artists of insulting religious values.

What did the cartoon depict?

The drawing shows two bearded and winged figures shaking hands in the clouds as missiles rained down below. It has been widely seen as a commentary on religious harmony in contrast to ongoing violence on Earth. However, it drew strong condemnation from government officials and religious conservatives.

In multiple posts on X (formerly Twitter), Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya confirmed the arrests, sharing videos of the four journalists being arrested. In one of the videos, the cartoonist Doğan Pehlevan, can be seen being handcuffed and escorted up a staircase by police. "I once again curse those who try to sow discord by drawing caricatures of our Prophet Muhammad," Yerlikaya wrote, adding "The person named D.P. who made this vile drawing has been caught and taken into custody...These shameless individuals will be held accountable before the law."

Three additional videos posted by the minister show officers forcefully detaining three other men—one of them barefoot—as they were removed from their homes and pushed into police vans. Among the men are the graphic designer, the editor-in-chief and the Institutional Director of Leman magazine. Authorities, as per Reuters, have said that six people in total face detention orders in connection with the cartoon.

Investigation launched under 'Crime of Publicly Inciting Hatred and Enmity or Degrading Sections of the Public'

Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç said an investigation had been launched under Article 216 of the Turkish penal code, which criminalises incitement to hatred or enmity. The law has been widely criticised by human rights advocates as a tool often used to silence dissent.

LeMan, on X issued a statement defending the cartoon and its intent. The magazine said it regretted that some readers found the illustration offensive but insisted the outrage stemmed from misinterpretation. According to LeMan, Pehlevan's drawing aimed to depict "the suffering of a Muslim man killed in Israeli attacks" and "to highlight the righteousness of the oppressed Muslim people, with no intention whatsoever of belittling religious values". The magazine also said that it “reject the stigma imposed on us, as there is no depiction of our Prophet.”

“To interpret the cartoon in such a way requires extreme malice,” it added. In another post the magazine noted that "The most commonly given and populous name in the world is Muhammad, Mehmet, Mamadu (all of which are used by Muslims to honour the name of our Prophet). Currently, there are 200 million people bearing the name Muhammad." The statement added condemnation for "those who cause misunderstandings and provocateurs. We invite our well-intentioned brothers who protest to understand us correctly."

The magazine accused some online accounts of engaging in a deliberate smear campaign and called on judicial authorities to act with fairness. "During this sensitive period that our country is going through, we call upon the Ministry of Justice and the units responsible for ensuring security to take action against those who are chasing after sparks," it said.

Later in the evening, video footage of a group of protesters marching to Leman's office in central Istanbul emerged on social media. Shouting slogans, some in the crowd were seen kicking the doors of the building. Turkey has long drawn criticism for its restrictions on press freedom. The country ranks 158th out of 180 in the 2024 World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders.