Tactless magazine Charlie Hebdo sued over mocking victims of Crans-Montana fire tragedy

A cartoon published by the tactless French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo depicting two skiers with burned faces and bandages racing down a mountain in Crans-Montana has sparked outrage online and prompted a lawsuit.

The Swiss resort was the site of a major blaze during New Year's celebrations at the Le Constellation bar, in which 40 people were killed and 116 injured. Around 80 of the injured remained hospitalized as of Monday.

Thousands of users reacted with an angry emoji to the drawing, entitled "The Burnt Go Skiing," which was posted on Facebook.

"This is really miserable," one wrote. Another accused the magazine of lacking empathy.

Swiss author Béatrice Riand and her husband, a lawyer have filed a criminal complaint over the cartoon.

"I find this deeply repugnant," Riand told Swiss television RTS. "Freedom of expression has its limits. They are making fun of the victims. The question is: Does human dignity take precedence over freedom of expression or not?"

The drawing by the artist known as Salch shows two people, apparently charred and bandaged, skiing down a slope. A sign on a pole reads Crans-Montana and the bottom right of the drawing is captioned with "The Comedy of the Year."

Salch is referencing the French comedy "Les Bronzés font du Ski" or tanned people ski from the 1970s, a slapstick film about a skiing holiday.

Charlie Hebdo's editor-in-chief, Gérard Biard, admitted to RTS that the cartoonist had gone very far, calling the drawing black humour.

"Of course it can shock, but satire is supposed to shock," he said. The satirical magazine was not making fun of the victims, but showing the absurdity of the tragedy.

Charlie Hebdo is known for its provocative and transgressive content. In January 2015, the magazine was the target of an ISIS attack that left 12 dead, after it had published slanderous cartoons of Prophet Mohammed, the founder of Islam.