Femen Stages a 'Topless Jihad'

Alan Taylor
April 4, 2013
31 Photos
In Focus

Earlier today, members of Ukrainian feminist group Femen staged protests across Europe as they called for a "topless jihad." The demonstrations were in support of a young Tunisian activist named Amina Tyler. Last month, Tyler posted naked images of herself online, with the words "I own my body; it's not the source of anyone's honor" written on her bare chest. The head of Tunisia's "Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice," reportedly called for Tyler to be stoned to death for her putatively obscene actions, lest they lead to an epidemic. Tyler has since gone quiet, leading some to fear for her safety. Below are images from Femen's protests today in Sweden, Italy, Ukraine, Belgium, and France. A warning, nearly every photo depicts nudity, and most contain offensive language.

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Activists of the women's rights movement Femen face riot policemen during a topless protest near Tunisia's Embassy in Paris, on April 4, 2013. Femen called for a day of international "topless jihad" on April 4 with Femen groups staging protests in various European cities in support of Amina, a young Tunisian woman who caused a scandal when she published photos of herself bare-chested on the internet in March. #

Miguel Medina/AFP/Getty Images

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Activists of the women's movement Femen remove their jackets as they arrive to demonstrate topless in front of the Great Mosque of Brussels, Belgium, on April 4, 2013. #

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Activists from women's rights group Femen shout slogans during a protest supporting the rights of Arab women, including the Tunisian activist Amina, at the entrance of the Brussels Mosque, on April 4, 2013. #

Reuters/Francois Lenoir

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Activists from Femen take part in a protest in front of the Consulate General of the Tunisian Republic in Milan, Italy, on April 4, 2013. #

Reuters/Alessandro Garofalo

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Femen activists protest in front of the Tunisian Consulate in Milan, on April 4, 2013. #

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Activists of Femen take part in a topless protest outside the Tunisian consulate in Milan, on April 4, 2013. #

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A Femen activist shouts during a topless protest outside the Tunisian consulate in Milan, on April 4, 2013. #

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Policemen arrest a Femen activist during a topless protest at a mosque in Kiev, Ukraine, on April 4, 2013. #

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Photographers take pictures of detained activists from women's rights group Femen, who are held in a police van after taking part in a protest in front of a mosque, in Kiev, Ukraine, on April 4, 2013. #

Reuters/Gleb Garanich

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Activists of the Communist Youth Organization alongside women's right movement Femen hold up placards as they take part in a protest outside the Tunisian embassy in Stockholm, Sweden, on April 4, 2013. #

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An activist of the Communist Youth Organization alongside women's right movement Femen gestures as she protests topless outside the Tunisian embassy in Stockholm, on April 4, 2013. #

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Topless Femen activists protest against Islamists in front of the Great Mosque of Paris, on April 3, 2013. #

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Femen activists try to burn a Salafist flag to protest against Islamists in front of the Great Mosque of Paris, on April 3, 2013. #

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A Femen activist burns a Salafist flag in front of the Great Mosque of Paris, on April 3, 2013. #

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A man kicks a topless Femen activist, as she raises her fist to protest against Islamists in front of the Great Mosque of Paris, on April 3, 2013. #

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Ukrainian activist Inna Shevchenko (right) of the women's rights movement Femen takes part in a topless protest with other Femen activists near Tunisia's Embassy in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

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Femen activists demonstrate near Tunisia's Embassy in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

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Femen activists protest near Tunisia's Embassy in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

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Ukrainian activist Inna Shevchenko and other members of Femen struggle with police officers during a protest in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

Reuters/Jacky Naegelen

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A Femen activist is removed by the police during a topless protest near Tunisia's Embassy in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

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Police officers detain a Femen activist in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

Reuters/Jacky Naegelen

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Femen activists struggle with police officers in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

Reuters/Jacky Naegelen

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Police officers detain a Femen activist in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

Reuters/Jacky Naegelen

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Femen activists demonstrate near Tunisia's Embassy in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

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A Femen activist is removed by riot policemen during a protest near Tunisia's Embassy in Paris, on April 4, 2013. #

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Activists of the women's movement Femen demonstrate in front of the Ahmadiyya-Moschee (Berlin's oldest Mosque) in Berlin, on April 4, 2013. #

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Femen activists speak to media in front of a mosque during a protest in Berlin, on April 4, 2013. The radical feminists, calling for more sexual freedom for Arab women, were protesting in support of a young Tunisian woman who received online death threats from ultraconservative Muslims after posting topless photos of herself online. #

AP Photo/Markus Schreiber

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Femen activists demonstrate in front of the Ahmadiyya-Moschee in Berlin, on April 4, 2013. #

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A Femen activist demonstrates in front of the Ahmadiyya-Moschee in Berlin, on April 4, 2013. #

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Femen activists hold up protest signs in front of the Ahmadiyya-Moschee in Berlin, on April 4, 2013. #

Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images

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A police officer stands in front of the Ahmadiyya-Moschee, after Femen activists staged a protest in Berlin, on April 4, 2013. #

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