Imam removed from office after protests against filming

The British government dismissed, on Saturday, an Islamic official from the position of head of an official task force, accusing him of encouraging protests against a film about the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad.

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The British channel Cineworld was forced to cancel the programming of the movie “La Dame du Paradis” (“Our Lady of Heaven”), which was shown in theaters in early June, after this campaign in front of theaters led by Islamic groups judging the feature film “blasphemy”.

Qari Asim, an imam and lawyer in Leeds in northern England, posted a comment on Facebook on Monday accusing the film of “harming Muslims severely”, without his group appearing themselves.

Imam Asim had released details of a protest in Leeds he was due to take on the same night, a position that conflicts with his duties as deputy head of an Islamophobia task force, according to British authorities.

They stood by mail and “with immediate effect” its posts, arguing that the campaign against the film “led to demonstrations inciting religious hatred”.

“This involvement in a campaign limiting freedom of expression runs counter to the advisory role of the government,” justified the authorities, whose campaign against the film also encouraged hostility between the Shiite and Sunni communities.

Released on June 3 in UK theaters, Our Lady of Heaven is the first film to feature Fatima al-Zahra, the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad and wife of Ali, the first Shiite. Before.

In response to a question from the Guardian, its executive producer Malik Schleback complained that Cineworld succumbed to “pressure”.

It was not possible to contact the imam to comment on the authorities’ decision.