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After massive protests.. offensive film about Fatimah al-Zahra withdrawn from cinemas in Britain

After massive protests.. offensive film about Fatimah al-Zahra withdrawn from cinemas in Britain

By م.زهير الشاعر

Published: June 8, 2022

Agencies: The British company Cineworld decided to withdraw the film "Lady of Heaven," which talks about Lady Fatima, the daughter of Prophet Muhammad, from all cinemas in Sheffield, Bolton, and Birmingham, after 4 consecutive days of demonstrations.
 

The British newspaper "Daily Mail" quoted the company as saying: "We decided to withdraw the film from all cinemas after it sparked a wave of intense anger among Muslims who described it as inappropriate."

This film was screened as part of the Platinum Jubilee week, which Britain is celebrating, but it was withdrawn from cinemas, while one cinema in London continues to show it tonight, according to "Daily Mail".

It is worth noting that "the cost of the film was 13 million euros".

For his part, the executive producer of the film, Malek Shlibak, described the decision to withdraw the film as "unacceptable" and accused the company of "succumbing to radical extremists".

The events of the film, which was filmed and produced in Britain for 12 million pounds, revolve around scenes about the invasion of Iraq by ISIS, and it depicts a filmed "ISIS" murder crime, before telling the story of Lady Fatima, one of the daughters of the Noble Prophet.

Islamic traditions prohibit direct filming of religious figures, as previous images of the prophets led to protests and even murders amid accusations of blasphemy.

Director Eli King portrays "Fatima" as a "faceless figure cloaked in a black veil to avoid doing so," but protesters accused the filmmakers of inaccurately portraying religious history and portraying 3 of the most important Islamic figures negatively.

The film stars former Coronation Street actor Ray Fearon, and was shown at the Cannes Film Festival last year, but it was only shown in Britain for the first time on June 3.

Other critics expressed their anger that "the negative characters were portrayed by actors of African descent, indicating a kind of racial bias against these people."

In turn, the local president of the Bolton Mosque Council, Asif Patel, wrote a letter to the company's local branch describing the film as "blasphemous".

He added: "The story raises the question of to what extent the producers considered the massive impact of this film on the Muslim community and the concepts of sanctity they embrace."

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