Charlie Hebdo. A satirical magazine from France born four times

photo: LCharrault/CC4.0/Wikimedia

Older and middle generations around the world who enjoy books, even if unfamiliar, have likely heard of the comic strip "Peanuts". Its main character is a sweet boy named Charlie Brown, and it’s his name that became part of the title of the globally known satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo.

Hebdo, on the other hand, is an abbreviation (apocope) of the adjective hebdomadaire - meaning weekly. The origins of this now “respectable” publication were very turbulent and date back to 1960. It also had a different name back then. In September 1960, three friends:

• satirist Georges Bernier known as Professeur Charon
• writer Francois Cavanna
• cartoonist Frederic Orhon Theodore Aristides who used the pseudonym Fred

founded a monthly magazine called Hara-Kiri. The three had known each other since the 1950s, when they worked together at the magazine Zero, renamed in 1958 to Cordees. After a failed attempt to take over the original monthly, they were forced to leave, which led to the birth of a new publication.

The cover of the first issue of Hara-Kiri was designed by Fred. It featured a samurai who had just committed harakiri (unzipping himself) and from his split-open belly protruded a smiling face. The caption read: Honni soit qui ça fait mal (Sincerity that hurts).


In the first issue, along with Cavanna, satirists like Jean Brasier, Jean Pelissier, De Carlo, and Charles le Gros contributed texts. Beside Fred`s drawings appeared humor from: Lob (Jacques Lob), Pelotsch (Pierre Perraudin), and Vicq (Antoine Raymond).

The print run of the first two issues was 10,000 copies, in small format, priced at 1.90 francs and sold directly on the street. But the third issue already hit newsstands, had a larger format (21x27cm), and featured a gallery of famous names including Jean Maurice, Jules Cabut known as Cabu, creators of French comics.

Stupid and wicked newspaper

Hara-Kiri`s fame grew, and the editorial office became a hub for young satirists hoping to be published. But the sharp language and exquisite linework didn’t sit well with some readers. One day, a letter arrived at the office with criticism: You are idiots. And not just stupid but evil. Bernier immediately turned this into a motto that lasted many years. On April 7, 1961, the issue bore the tagline: Journal bête et méchant (stupid and wicked newspaper)

Although popular on the street, the monthly was a thorn in the side of the authorities, who banned it twice - in 1961 and 1966 - which led to financial troubles. In 1967, bankruptcy was declared. Bernier and Cavanna founded a new company: Editions du Square and moved the editorial office from Rue Choron to Rue de Montholon.

Hara-Kiri quickly recovered. During this time, Delfeil de Ton, a well-known journalist, joined the team, and in February 1969 the word Hebdo was added to the title, transforming the monthly into a weekly.

November 1970 brought more trouble, a block, and a name change. On November 1, a tragedy occurred at the Paris nightclub “5-7.” Flames took the lives of 146 people. Nine days later, on November 9, General Charles de Gaulle died, and on November 16, Hara-Kiri ran the headline: Bal tragique à Colombey - 1 mort (Tragic ball in Colombey, 1 dead). These were essentially two headlines separated by a dash, meant to be a parody of how the press covered the nightclub fire ten days before the general’s death, but it came off poorly and caused uproar in France. The general was insulted and his death mocked.

Sales ban. For pornography

The outrage was so great that the matter reached the highest state offices and the paper was censored and banned from sale. The official reason: for spreading pornography, referring to a drawing of four little penises by Willem and Cabu from earlier issues. A scandal broke out. Journalists stood in defense of their colleagues.

The newsroom was in turmoil. How to save the weekly? Other papers stepped in. Le Monde and Le Nouvel Observateur gave up their covers and several pages for support. A week after the bans and intense brainstorming, Bernier and Cavanna found a lifeline. On November 23, a new weekly Charlie Hebdo launched, in the old style.

The editorial article by Francois Cavanna declared: Iln`ya pas de censure France (There’s no censorship in France), and a man in dark glasses with a cane said: Liberté de la presse? Vaut mieux entendre ça que d`être sourd! (Freedom of the press? Better to hear that than be deaf!). At the top of the front page, the names and pseudonyms of the authors were listed:

• Cabu
• Cavanna
• Prof. Choron (Bernier)
• Delfeil de Ton (Henri Roussel, journalist)
• Fournier (Pierre Fournier, journalist)
• Gébé (Georges Blondeaux, graphic designer)
• Reiser (Jean-Marc Roeiser, cartoonist)
• Willem (Bernhard Willem Holtrop, Dutch cartoonist)
• Wolinski (Jerzy Woliński, graphic artist of Polish origin)

In short, the entire Hara-Kiri team. Though the declaration stated: Charlie Hebdo in no way replaces L’Hebdo Hara-Kiri, aside from small graphic changes and article order, everyone knew this was a continuation.

New leader of the satirical scene in France

The name of the weekly was not only the name of the boy from Peanuts but also a nod to General Charles de Gaulle. As everyone knows, forbidden fruit tastes the sweetest, and that was the case here. Readers snatched the paper from one another, and its circulation quickly soared. While Hara-Kiri sold 40,000 copies weekly, Charlie Hebdo reached 100,000.


Just like before, Francois Cavanna served as editor-in-chief, and Georges Bernier directed the entire publishing house. Given the circumstances, the ban on printing Hara-Kiri was lifted, leaving only the restriction on sales to minors. Although the weekly appeared sporadically until October 1989, Charlie Hebdo became the undeniable leader of the French satirical media scene.

Throughout the 1970s, Charlie Hebdo entertained and shocked. Its covers were known across France. Politics was the main subject, but the paper touched on many other issues too. It was even ahead of its time in some areas, such as political ecology, a concept pioneered by Pierre Fournier. The main topics of that era included:

• social consumerism
• counterculture
• anti-racism
• anti-militarism
• sex
• religion
• feminism

Georges Bernier and François Cavanna were the backbone of the editorial team. Bernier, while often publishing his own articles in the weekly, oversaw the entire company (which included about seven other titles), advertising, distribution, and finances. He loved to provoke. He insulted more than a few dignitaries and politicians and didn`t care at all. He stood trial several times for insulting the police and the military. He eagerly supported younger colleagues in their projects and didn’t consider them editorial property.

Cavanna was a writer and had a different take on satire. He wrote columns, essays, and reports. He translated books. Sometimes he dabbled in drawing. The two men understood and complemented each other well. Sadly, not forever.

Alongside the founding duo, the key figures in the editorial staff were illustrators Woliński and Cabu. Both were present at the birth of Hara-Kiri and Charlie Hebdo. They felt most at home in caricature. They also created characters that became part of the history of French satire. Woliński gave life to Le roi des cons (King of fools) and Cabu to Le Grand Duduche (The grand prince). They appeared on TV shows like Droit de reponse (Right of reply) where they illustrated events live in the studio. They had their own columns, held exhibitions, and taught younger artists. Both were killed in the 2015 editorial attack.

Charlie Hebdo was known for its names. If a rookie had potential - and only such talent made it through - the whole of France would soon know them. This was the case with Sylvie Caster, who joined the Charlie Hebdo team in 1976 as a columnist. Today, she has authored numerous articles, columns, and books. She was the first woman in the editorial team of Canard enchaîné, where she began working in 1983 and led the column Calamity Caster. She still contributes to the weekly.


One notable figure of the era was Dutch graphic artist and journalist Bernhard Willem Holtrop, signing as Willem. Holtrop had already clashed with authorities in his home country due to his caricatures. In 1966, in the magazine Provo, he published drawings of Queen Juliana as a prostitute in a window and of a swastika-shaped policeman chasing a small man. He was taken to court. He was fined for insulting the monarchy and public authority. He didn’t pay, appealed, and was acquitted - but left the Netherlands in protest and moved to Paris, where he began working for Charlie Hebdo.

He authored many comics and, as a result, created a variety of characters, like detective Guust van Dalen and the black-bearded terrorist Barnstein. His cartoons were filled with sex, violence, and drugs. Not being fluent in French grammar, he made many errors, which amused the editorial team. Bernier decided to keep them and didn’t allow the Dutchman`s texts to be corrected. Over time, this weird language became Willem’s signature, and readers loved it.

The line crossed, collapse and revival

Charlie Hebdo didn’t run ads. All its income came from subscriptions and newsstand sales. As it turned out, Bernier overspent on personal pleasures. Also, more and more pornography and vulgarities appeared in the weekly, which didn’t sit well with Cavanna or the readers. The early 1980s brought conflict not just between the two founders but across the entire editorial team.

In his book Honeymoon, Cavanna wrote about those days: obscene? why not, if we stay in the parody of shit, but not in shit itself. Debts and disputes led to the paper’s downfall. The last issue appeared on December 23, 1981, as number 580. In January 1982, Bernier declared bankruptcy. Charlie Hebdo vanished from the French media scene.

For the next 10 years, each former Charlie Hebdo member worked at similar publications or independently. Until 1992, when Gébé and Cabu, who were then working for the satirical weekly La Grosse Bertha, left in solidarity with the editor-in-chief, singer and comedian Philippe Val. The men decided to launch their own paper. They invited their old colleagues Cavanna, Delfeil de Ton, and Wolinski. Bernier declined, remembering past conflicts and disagreements.

They didn`t spend much time on the name of the new paper. They were unanimous: Charlie Hebdo. With its revival came the founding of a joint-stock company SARL Kalashnikov, whose shareholders - and thus owners - were:

• Gébé (Georges Blondeaux)
• Renaud (Renaud Séchan), singer-songwriter
• Philippe Val
• Cabu
• Bernard Maris (Oncle Bernard), economist, writer, and journalist

Dutchman Willem rejoined his editorial colleagues, and the old team was reinforced by:

• Siné (Maurice Sinet), designer and cartoonist
• Charb (Stéphane Charbonnier), satirical cartoonist and columnist
• Luz (Renald Luzier), illustrator and comic book author
• Tignous (Bernard Verlhac), cartoonist

The first issue, released on July 1, 1992, had a print run of 100,000 copies. The cover headline read Urba, chomage, hemophiles, superphenix (Urba, unemployment, hemophilia, super phoenix - scandals of the time), and a worried François Mitterrand (in caricature) added: et Charlie Hebdo qui revient! (and Charlie Hebdo returns!) In the bottom left corner, in a short column, editor-in-chief Philippe Val humorously and bluntly said goodbye to his former employer: Adieu “La Grosse”.


Cavanna became company director, Val editor-in-chief, and Gébé editorial and artistic director. The editorial team set a goal: to preserve “the spirit of Charlie”, which means the ability to laugh at everything, with recurring targets like the military, religious fundamentalists, or the far right. The paper aims to maintain a polemical tone without losing sight of ideals of social justice.

Critics claimed that all that remained of the original Charlie was the name and that the new version didn’t measure up. But readers disagreed. Circulation quickly rose to 140,000 copies.

In the crosshairs. Politicians, religions, even entire cities

The main theme of the 1990s in the weekly was the far-right National Front party and the entire political right. Furious politicians filed lawsuits one after another, and the editors became regular guests in the dock, which they mocked in their pages as they continued doing what they did. In 1995, journalists gathered 173,704 signatures on a petition to outlaw the National Front, which they claimed violated several points of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. The weekly achieved nothing legally, but for years afterward, politicians from that party remained a favorite target of aggressive cartoons and columns.

Religion was always not taboo in the world of satire. While Catholicism was the main target in earlier years, in the new era, attention turned to Islam, which, as we know, tolerates no jokes about itself. Charlie Hebdo spared no one. Police, government, the pope, or a foreign president were always fair game for the weekly’s journalists and cartoonists. Even entire cities were attacked, like Toulon in 1995, after the National Front won local elections there.

In 1993, popular topics included Bill Clinton (January 20), John Paul II (March 3), and Helmut Kohl (June 2), and in 1995, the new French president Jacques Chirac. Even Lady Diana (September 3, 1997) and wars like the Kosovo conflict in 1999 weren’t off limits.

But religion and politics weren’t the only dominant topics in the editorial office or on the pages of the weekly. Sex - in all forms and configurations - violence, and money were everywhere. When it came to money, Oncle Bernard (Bernard Maris) had the most to say. He wrote the economics column under that name.

Maris was an economist, university lecturer, and journalist. Before joining Charlie Hebdo, he wrote for various papers including Le Monde and Le Figaro Magazine. He gave commentaries on French radio and TV. He openly criticized capitalism and the market economy. He was a politically engaged leftist thinker. He died in the 2015 attack.

A rising star of the time was Renald Luzier “Luz”. He joined the team in March 1995. Two years later, he made waves with his comic strip Les Mégret gèrent la ville (The Mégrets manage the city) in which he mocked the newly elected mayor of Vitrolles, Catherine Mégret, and her husband. The case went to court, where Luz was acquitted.

Editorial war and the Muhammad cartoons

While everything looked fine on the outside and circulation was rising, the editorial team was in conflict. Constant arguments and tension - caused by the editor-in-chief himself - made collaboration difficult. The nearly 40-person staff split into two political factions, and Val pushed his methods so hard that those who opposed him were fired. One of the first was Mona Chollet, a Swiss writer and journalist. In 2000, she protested Val’s description of Palestinians as uncivilized and was fired. Others who shared her fate included:

• Philippe Corcuff, left-wing journalist and columnist
• Olivier Cyran, journalist
• Lefred-Thouron, illustrator and designer
• François Camé, journalist, writer, head of news
• Michel Boujut, film critic

The editorial war lasted until 2009, ending with the revolution and Val’s departure. But before that, Charlie Hebdo endured several painful blows. After the September 11 attacks, the world turned its attention to Islam and its followers. The Paris weekly did the same - perhaps more drastically - expressing its views through drawings, columns, and caricatures that were pointed and one-sided: NO TO ISLAM, NO TO TERROR...


In November 2002, the weekly published a text by Robert Misrahi supporting the views of Italian journalist and author Oriana Fallaci and praising her book La Rage et l’Orgueil (The Rage and the Pride), in which she spoke out against Islam. The article sparked criticism and divided public opinion. Misrahi was condemned for the way he expressed his views.

On February 8, 2006, Charlie Hebdo sparked outrage among French (and not only) Muslims by printing, after Denmark’s Jyllands-Posten and France’s own France-Soir, a series of 12 Muhammad cartoons. The drawings were accompanied by a cover from Cabu, showing Muhammad clutching his head and saying: It’s hard being loved by idiots. The issue sold 400,000 copies (with reprints), and the Islamic pot boiled over. Islamic organizations sued the weekly, which was acquitted a year later. In March, Charlie Hebdo published the Manifeste des douze: Ensemble contre le nouveau totalitarisme (Manifesto of the Twelve: Together against the new totalitarianism), where twelve prominent figures including Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Taslima Nasreen, and Salman Rushdie spoke out against religious fascism.

Islam and its leaders stayed on the weekly’s pages, but weren’t the only topic. France held elections, Benedict XVI became the new pope, and Gébé passed away. In November 2005, riots broke out in Paris and lasted 18 days after two teens died from electric shock. The journalists took notice.

In October 2007, the weekly opposed the Zénith de Paris amendment (introducing DNA tests for family reunification). Future First Lady Carla Bruni supported them. In February 2008, the weekly`s journalists held a meeting at École Normale Supérieure in Paris to support Ayaan Hirsi Ali and her fight for women’s rights around the world.

The Siné affair

Every major and minor event found its place in Charlie Hebdo. Meanwhile, the editorial conflict raged on. Val’s opponents accused him of:

• being authoritarian,
• increasingly rare humor in his articles,
• making a deal with the paper Liberation to run ads in Charlie Hebdo (which had never published ads before)
• imposing his pro-Israeli views
• mismanaging finances

The final straw was the Siné affair in July 2008. Siné, or Maurice Sinet, a cartoonist and satirist, began working at Charlie Hebdo in 1981, creating the column Siné sème sa zone (Siné makes trouble). After the paper’s relaunch in 1992, he resumed the column. He was taken to court several times for alleged antisemitism and inciting racial hatred.

On July 2, 2008, Siné published a column in Charlie Hebdo criticizing Jean Sarkozy, the son of the newly elected president, especially for converting to Judaism. The article stirred controversy, mainly in political circles, and the weekly was labeled antisemitic. A lawsuit followed, and Val fired Siné. This sparked an even bigger uproar in French journalism. Rumors swirled about revenge, grudges, and conflicts between the editor and the cartoonist. Regardless, on July 18, the long-time artist left the paper, and two years later, he was cleared of all charges.


On May 12, 2009, after 17 years, Philippe Val also left the editorial team. He was replaced by journalist Gérard Biard. That wasn’t the only personnel change. Charb (Stéphane Charbonnier) became the new publishing director, cartoonist Riss (Laurent Sourisseau) took over as editorial director with Sylvie Coma as his assistant, and Bernard Maris became managing editor. In August, the weekly launched its own publishing house, Les Échappés, run by Riss.

Charlie Hebdo 3

When emotions settled and the atmosphere calmed down, in September 2009 a third version was announced (Charlie Hebdo 3), along with the release of the 900th anniversary issue and the official launch of the website. Although it had been live since September 10, 2008, it was still under construction.

Charlie Hebdo was born for the third time. In the first issue of its third life, the editorial article made the following declarations:

• Charlie will no longer be associated with Philippe Val
• it will reconnect with what unites everyone in the newsroom: a passion for satire
• there will be more investigative journalism
• new journalistic genres will appear
• and new names (Guillaume Dasquié and Laurent Léger)

This time, in a calmer environment, journalists and cartoonists carried on their crusade against religion and politics, putting at the forefront the principle of laïcité - the absolute separation of church and state: We are a paper against religions whenever they enter the political and public sphere. You should not identify through religion, at least not in a secular state.

Charlie Hebdo kept moving forward, despite threats and questions from supporters like: is it worth adding fuel to the fire? But freedom of speech mattered more than threats. The first November 2011 issue was promoted as Sharia Hebdo, with Muhammad as guest editor-in-chief. The statement read:

To celebrate the victory of the Islamist party Ennahda in Tunisia… Charlie Hebdo asked Muhammad to be the special editor-in-chief of the next issue. The Prophet of Islam didn’t need to be asked twice, and we thank him for that.

First attack on the newsroom

On the cover of that issue, the prophet says: 100 lashes if you don`t die of laughter, and inside there was an article by him titled Aperitif Halal and a women’s insert Madam Sharia. The issue was scheduled for release on Wednesday, November 2, but during the night between November 1 and 2, the editorial office at 62 Boulevard Davout was firebombed, and the website was hacked (with Quran quotes and Mecca images appearing).

The fire destroyed the office space, but no one died and the issue still came out. The following week’s cover featured two passionately kissing men - a Muslim and a cartoonist - under the caption: L’amour plus fort que la haine (Love is stronger than hate).


After the attack, the team was hosted for nearly two months by colleagues from Liberation. At the beginning of 2012, Charlie Hebdo moved into an office at 26 rue Serpollet. While society generally criticized the actions of the Islamists, many organizations and individuals also criticized the weekly. On the website Les mots sont importants, twenty signatories supported a text titled: For freedom of expression. Against support for Charlie Hebdo! The authors condemned a clownish manipulation orchestrated by the Guéant-Charb duo, the political class, and major media, participating in the “sarkozification and lepenization of minds.”

A year later, on September 19, 2012, the weekly published another series of Muhammad cartoons: In the name of freedom of expression, even if it means dragging France into a wave of anger in the Muslim world, triggered by the screening of the Islamophobic film “Innocence of Muslims.”

This time, in addition to religious groups, some politicians also expressed disapproval. The French government, just in case, closed embassies in Muslim countries. Lawsuits followed, and Charb ended up on a wanted dead or alive list published by Al-Qaeda’s English-language magazine (2013).

Readers’ fundraiser to save Charlie

After Philippe Val left the editorial team and sold his shares for a symbolic sum, Charlie Hebdo began facing financial troubles. The weekly didn’t run ads, and its circulation was dropping, as was the case with most newspapers. Although 40,000 copies were printed weekly, only 30,000 were sold. To break even, 35,000 needed to be sold.

Debt was piling up. Occasionally, when major events occurred, circulation spiked, but it was an unpredictable rollercoaster. In November 2014, Charb asked the public for help. Donations amounted to 200,000 euros, which helped save the weekly.

Charlie Hebdo, though not the largest satirical paper on the French market (Le Canard Enchainé holds that title), remains a thorn in the side not only of the Muslim world but also the Catholic and political spheres. Compared to its rivals, it is both more crude and more ruthless - combining caricatures with often fierce, polemical humor.

Thanks to its sharp cartoons and cutting, aggressive texts, it became a permanent fixture of the French street, visible at newsstands, bookstores, and stations. Frequent topics in the second decade of the 21st century included church sex scandals (2010), with Pope Benedict XVI often featured on covers - holding a condom over his head saying: this is my body, or kissing a Vatican guard, shouting: finally free!

In 2013, the headlines focused on the government crisis, same-sex marriage, and the war in Syria. A year later, the spotlight was on the new Prime Minister Manuel Valls and marijuana legalization.

January 7, 2015. Twelve fatalities

But the topic of Islam and Muhammad returned from time to time. On January 7, 2015, issue number 1177 featured a caricature of Michel Houellebecq, author of the controversial novel Submission, which launched that same day. The cover was drawn by Luz (Renald Luzier), while inside the issue Charb featured a cartoon titled: Still no attack in France - an armed Islamist declares: Wait! We have until the end of January to send our greetings.

At the same time, a cartoon by Honoré appeared on Facebook and Twitter, showing Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the Islamic State, wishing the French a Happy New Year: And above all, good health. No one at Charlie Hebdo imagined they had summoned the wolf from the woods.


As usual, on Wednesday January 8, 2015, at 10:30 a.m., the editorial meeting began at the office at 10 rue Nicolas Appert, the paper’s headquarters since July 1, 2014. An hour later, at 11:25, two masked, armed men stormed the building, shooting two security guards from Sodexo and killing one of them. On their way inside, they encountered Corinne Rey (Coco), a designer and cartoonist, whom they took hostage and forced to unlock the main newsroom doors.

They burst in, demanded to see Charb. When he stepped forward, they shot him. Then, shouting: you insulted the prophet, they opened fire on the rest of the people in the conference room. As they exited, shouting Allahu akbar! and We avenged the prophet Muhammad!, they kept shooting. At the main entrance, they ran into a police patrol, fired several shots, then jumped into a car. Driving off, they continued firing at arriving officers. At the end of the street, they left the car and, still shooting, shouted: We killed Charlie Hebdo.

A wounded police officer of Muslim background was executed with a shot to the head. A manhunt began, ending in the terrorists’ escape. They abandoned their car, leaving behind evidence and identification. The attackers were brothers Chérif and Saïd Kouachi, members of AQAP (Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula). The attack was carried out with the group`s knowledge and approval.

Within just minutes, 12 people were killed. Eight were key members of the editorial team:

• Jean Maurice Jules Cabut, Cabu
• Stéphane Charbonnier, Charb
• Bernard Verlhac, Tignous
• Philippe Honoré, Honoré
• Georges Woliński, Woliński
• Bernard Maris, Oncle Bernard
• Mustapha Ourrad, copy editor
• Elsa Cayat, psychoanalyst and columnist

The remaining four were:

• Frédéric Boisseau, Sodexo employee, the first victim
• Michel Renaud, guest at the editorial meeting
• Franck Brinsolaro, SDLP police officer, personal bodyguard to Charb
• Ahmed Merabet, police officer, peacekeeper, wounded and executed after trying to stop the killers’ escape

There were also 11 injured. Among them were journalists Philippe Lançon and Fabrice Nicolino, severely injured webmaster Simon Fieschi, and cartoonist Laurent Sourisseau-Riss. All of France was speechless. The world was stunned. January 8 was declared a national day of mourning. It turned out that the Charlie Hebdo attack wasn’t the only terrorist operation planned for that day.

Je suis Charlie

On Sunday, January 11, a protest march took place with the participation of 44 world leaders and one and a half million people. Over the two days (January 10-11), many such marches were held, with an estimated total of around 4 million participants. People all over the world protested. In Paris, marchers carried signs reading Je suis Charlie (I am Charlie) - white letters on a black background. The same message appeared on the website, which was shut down right after the attack but was soon restored. The slogan also spread on Twitter, accompanied by an image of a clenched fist holding a pencil.


The drawing and slogan were used by media around the world in coverage of the Paris tragedy. Within two days, it became one of the most popular hashtags (6,500 per minute), and on January 14, it appeared on the cover of issue 1178, called the survivor. A weeping Muhammad holds the sign, and above his head reads: Tout est pardonné (All is forgiven). The cover was drawn by Luz, who avoided the attack - he was not at the office, just like editor-in-chief Gérard Biard, who was in London at the time.

The survivor issue, with all reprints, reached 5 million copies. All profits beyond the regular amount went to compensation for the families of the victims. The next issue, 1179, was published only on February 25 with the headline: C’est reparti! (Here we go again).

As always in difficult times, colleagues from Liberation stepped in and supported the wounded editorial team. They advertised the return of the weekly, its topics (attacks in Copenhagen, the Agricultural Fair, and the desecration of a Jewish cemetery), and introduced new cartoonists Ali Dilem and Rene Pétillon.

Perhaps the terrorists - who were shot two days after the attack - were forgiven, but certainly not forgotten. Despite fear, topics about Islam continued to appear on Charlie Hebdo’s covers, and Biard said: Charlie is alive and will not give up. However, the figure of Muhammad disappeared.

The killer is still free

The trauma had its effect, along with media pressure, police oversight, and the absence of fallen colleagues in the newsroom. For some, it was too much. In May 2015, Renald Luzier "Luz" announced his departure. He no longer wanted to draw cartoons of Muhammad. By October, his position was vacant.

The murdered journalists were posthumously awarded France’s highest honors (Legion of Honour), their names etched on many commemorative plaques, and streets were named after them. Two gargoyles on the tower in La Rochelle guarding the entrance to the Old Port bear the faces of Wolinski and Cabu. France remembers.

So do their colleagues. One year after the tragedy, on January 6, 2016, a special edition of Charlie Hebdo was published. The cover depicted God with a Kalashnikov on his back and the caption: L’assassin court toujours (The killer is still on the run). Issue 1224 had 32 pages, a print run of one million copies, and included caricatures and works by the murdered staff.

Only on September 9, 2020, five years after the events, did the trial begin for the January 2015 attacks. Corinne Rey, Angélique Le Corre, Sigolène Vinson, Laurent Léger, Cécile Thomas, Gérard Gaillard, and Simon Fieschi testified about the events of that day. They survived. Though the main attackers were absent, their accomplices, charged with aiding and abetting other terrorist acts that month, were present.

The first question after the attack, at the first editorial meeting, was: What now?… Will we survive? They survived. Donations from around the world ensured continued existence. Gérard Biard remained editor-in-chief. Charb’s responsibilities were taken over by Laurent Sourisseau - Riss. He also became the majority shareholder (70%). The team included about 20 cartoonists and 30 journalists, both staff and freelancers. Everyone returned to work. Weekly editorial meetings still took place on Wednesdays, and to this day, no outsider knows the location of the editorial office. Charlie Hebdo was reborn for the fourth time.

We give ourselves the right to criticize

For a while after the attack, the paper’s circulation hovered around a million, but interest gradually declined, and the journalists themselves didn’t want to be seen as martyrs or heroes. While Islam remained a topic, it was addressed less frequently - partly because there were internal editorial disagreements on the matter.


The 21st-century world delivers so many events worth commenting on that Charlie Hebdo quickly returned to its usual path. In September 2015, it caused outrage with cartoons of Ailan Kurdi, the boy who drowned when a boat carrying Syrian refugees capsized off Turkey. In November, a convenient topic was Russia and the crash of the A321 aircraft over the Sinai Peninsula. A year later, on December 28, cartoons depicted the crash of a Russian Defense Ministry Tu-154 plane near Sochi that killed 92 people, and the murder of Russian ambassador Andrei Karlov in Turkey. As expected, Vladimir Putin was not amused by these jokes.

According to Russian website www.travelerscoffee.ru: the A321 cartoons were published on the last page under the title “Covers you avoided.” This section features cover proposals that were rejected. Thanks for that.

On March 30, 2016, Riss stirred another storm with his editorial on the Brussels attack (March 22). When he described the Belgian response as cowardice, fear of disputes, accusations of Islamophobia or racism, leading to terror, others accused him of a web of nonsense reducing every practicing Muslim to a terrorist or criminal.

He again caused a stir on October 29, 2019, by calling the ruling party La République en marche La République islamique en marche. The article came with a cover showing a caricature of President Macron surrounded by veiled women. A caption, referencing a speech he gave on Reunion Island, read: Not my business.

Later that year, in November, part of the team led by Coco (Corinne Rey) participated in the World Forum for Democracy in Strasbourg. The journalists answered every accusation, especially about recent cartoons. Their conclusion was clear:

We don’t stop anyone from wearing what they want. But we reserve the right to criticize religion, just as we always have. We criticized Catholicism, we criticize Islam, we criticize Buddhists who persecute the Rohingya. We give ourselves the right to criticize religion, and that is normal.

Anniversary year full of scandals

In 2017, the weekly celebrated its 25th anniversary (1992-2017). Some, like Riss, argued it should be counted from 1970, making it 43 years. That same year, the team proudly entered the German market, although since January 2015, Charlie Hebdo was already available in Polish kiosks. Oddly, it cost 39.90 zł even though the price was 3 euros - less than 15 zł.

Still, the anniversary year was packed with special publications. No one had reason to worry, even though circulation had dropped compared to the tragic year. Fifty thousand copies were available on newsstands and the same number sent to subscribers. A print run of 100,000 was a solid result.

Scandals boosted those stats. That was the case in February and November of the anniversary year. The February issue, number 1281, depicted Angela Merkel holding the severed head of Martin Schulz. This referenced German elections but also the cover of German magazine Der Spiegel, where Donald Trump holds the severed head of the Statue of Liberty.

On November 1, the cover featured Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan, accused of rape at Oxford University. In a crude pose, smiling, he declared: Je suis le 6e pilier de l’islam (I am the sixth pillar of Islam). The editorial inbox received many criminal threats, including death threats. The matter was handed over to the police.


A similar situation occurred on September 1, 2020, when the paper, on the occasion of the trial of the January 2015 attackers, announced another series of Muhammad cartoons. The editorial explained:

We’ve often been asked to publish new Muhammad cartoons, but we always refused. Not because it’s forbidden, but because we needed a good reason that would add something to the debate. The start of the trial seems like a good reason.

The Muslim world began protesting and threatening. Instagram blocked the accounts of journalists Laure Daussy and Coco, who had posted the cartoons. In retaliation, on September 25, a young Pakistani man, claiming to defend the Prophet, stabbed and seriously wounded two people near Charlie Hebdo’s former offices. They were employees of a TV station that had taken over the space - something the attacker didn’t know. He believed he was attacking Charlie Hebdo journalists.

That same year, on October 28, a cover showed Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in underwear with alcohol in hand, lifting the skirt of a woman in a hijab to admire her bare buttocks. The caption read: Erdoğan. Privately, he’s very funny. The already tense situation between the countries escalated further, and Turkey threatened legal action.

Reports from Poland. Not very flattering

In November, the Poles were targeted. A team of journalists from the weekly visited the Independence March, which took place on November 11 in Warsaw. They wanted to observe the event firsthand. The article by Laure Daussy was published on November 12 and directly stated that November 11 in Poland is a “far-right holiday.” The author managed to speak with some march participants. She wrote:

There were acts of homophobia - LGBT people represent for them the beginning of the end of the world. This year’s posters promoting the march were truly frightening: the LGBT flag is cut to pieces.Far-right leaders (Robert Bąkiewicz) addressed the crowd with slogans like: “Glory to great Poland,” and even: “We must follow Christ. If we don’t, we’ll become like the rotten West.” Fascists are doing well here.

The article was accompanied by a caricature of John Paul II by Alice with the caption: Poland. A country where Muhammad’s name is John Paul II. The Charlie Hebdo team’s visit resulted in a series of articles about Poland. Unfortunately, they were not flattering.

On March 13, 2021, Queen Elizabeth II appeared on the cover. It was a comment on Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The Queen, grinning wildly, pins her grandson’s wife to the ground with her knee, and when asked Why did Meghan leave Buckingham Palace, she responds: Because I couldn’t breathe.

For the past two years, the main topic has been the pandemic. No one escapes the humor of Charlie Hebdo. They mock in their usual style - doctors, patients, and especially the government, which often shrugs helplessly.

Unofficial 50th anniversary

It’s hard to say how old the weekly is. Some count its age from 1992, others from 1970. So is it 52 years or 30? According to Riss, it should be counted from the first issue and by the issue numbers. Thus, in 2020, they celebrated the 50th anniversary of the first issue. The publishing director was asked which covers he valued most over the years. Riss chose five, and readers agreed with the selection:

• 1972 - One in three popes believes in God
• 1972 - The Muddy Order
• 1995 - Chirac. Sold separately
• 2001 - Sell! (9/11 attacks)
• 2009 - Michael Jackson finally white

For the anniversary, a book titled Charlie Hebdo. 50 years of freedom of speech was published. Nearly 300 pages told the turbulent history of the weekly and its fight for freedom of expression, both in text and drawings. Those who had passed away were remembered.


On July 9, 2021, a series of tribute articles and drawings by Stéphane Charbonnier, Charb, was launched. Though seven years had passed since his death, his humor continued to entertain, and his perspective on the world - which is now different - remained relevant. Just as in the past, Charlie Hebdo still speaks about global issues, the country, religion, and culture. The weekly is divided into sections and cartoon departments:

• Société (society)
• International (international affairs)
• Politique (politics)
• Écologie (ecology)
• Culture (culture)
• Économie (economy)
• Sciences (science)
• Religions (religion)

Each journalist writes or draws for every section. Among the core group of 29 writers are: Philippe Lançon, Gérard Biard, Yannick Haenel, and Jean-Yves Camus. Among the 21 cartoonists, we still find the Dutch artist Willem and Riss, and from the younger generation Biche, June, and Alice. After a long recovery, Simon Fieschi returned to his position as webmaster, and Eric Portheault oversees the finances. Legal matters have long been handled by Richard Malka, who is also a comic book author and novelist.

The weekly is not only about cartoons and articles. It also features funny quizzes, special editions, books, and a newsletter. It’s part of French life, both daily and on special occasions. Charlie Hebdo can be found on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. On the website charliehebdo.fr, readers can access all articles and drawings.

Charlie Hebdo is still going strong. Its loyal base includes nearly 55,000 readers (September 2020 circulation) who support the journalists and cartoonists who create the weekly with passion and dedication. On the website, they describe their work as follows:

Charlie Hebdo is a satirical, secular, political, and joyful newspaper. A slap in the face to those who won’t let us think. It’s an angry paper. A laughing paper that criticizes. A paper with nothing to lose because after life, there’s nothing.

To be happy, Charlie Hebdo draws, writes, interviews, reflects, and plays with everything funny on Earth, everything grotesque in life. Because life is so short, it would be a shame to spend it complaining about fate instead of laughing at it.

Charlie Hebdo timeline

• 1960, September - Hara-Kiri is founded, the predecessor of Charlie Hebdo
• 1970, November 23 - first issue of Charlie Hebdo
• 1981, December 23 - issue 580 is the final issue before the weekly declares bankruptcy
• 1992, July 1 - Charlie Hebdo returns to the French market
• 1995 - Charlie Hebdo demands the dissolution of the National Front (173,704 signatures on a petition)
• 2006, February 8 - series of 12 Muhammad cartoons angers the Muslim world
• 2008, September 10 - website launch
• 2009, August - launch of its own publishing house Les Echappes
• 2011, night of November 1-2 - firebomb attack on the editorial office and website hacking
• 2012, September 19 - another series of Muhammad cartoons; the French government closes embassies in Muslim countries
• 2015, January 7 - terrorist attack on the editorial office kills 12 people
• 2015, January 14 - special issue known as “the survivor”
• 2020, September 1 - republication of Muhammad cartoons for the trial of the 2015 attackers
• 2020, September 9 - trial of those responsible for the January 7, 2015 events begins
• 2020-2022 - main topic is COVID-19

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