Thousands of Muslims took to the streets of the Bangladesh capital on Tuesday to protest against remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron in a row about cartoons that has angered Muslims.

The dispute has its roots in a knife attack outside a French school on October 16 in which a man of Chechen origin beheaded Samuel Paty, a teacher who had shown pupils the cartoons in a civics lesson on freedom of speech. France has allowed displays of the cartoons, which are considered blasphemous by Muslims.

Macron paid tribute to Paty, describing him as a “quiet hero” dedicated to instilling the democratic values of the French Republic in his pupils. Protesters in Dhaka unfurled placards with caricatures of Macron and shouted slogans, demanding an unconditional apology and the ouster of the French ambassador.

Many carried placards bearing messages such as “Stop Islamophobia”, “Boycott France” and “Lay siege to the French Embassy in Dhaka” as they marched towards the French embassy before police stopped them.