Award-winning author Salman Rushdie, who once received death threats
for portrayals of Islam in his work, expressed his support for the
satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo after an attack that killed at least
12 on Wednesday.

“I stand with Charlie Hebdo, as we all must, to defend the art of
satire, which has always been a force for liberty and against tyranny,
dishonesty and stupidity,” he wrote in a statement posted by the
Guardian. Gunmen killed at least 12 people in the paper’s offices

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“‘Respect for religion’ has become a code phrase meaning ‘fear of
religion,’” Rushdie wrote. “Religions, like all other ideas, deserve
criticism, satire, and, yes, our fearless disrespect.”

Read more: The Provocative History of the French Weekly Newspaper