BBC screens Prophet cartoons

2006-02-02 18:10

London - The BBC broadcast irreverent cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed on Thursday to help audiences understand "the strong feelings" sparked by a report of a Muslim backlash provoked by their original publication in Denmark.

A BBC spokesperson said the cartoons were broadcast on the 13:00 news bulletin on BBC One, its main domestic channel.

First published in Denmark in September and later picked up by a dozen publications across Europe, the caricatures have provoked a firestorm of indignation in the Muslim world.

A few extremist Islamic groups, such at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, have threatened retaliation against citizens from the countries in which the cartoons appeared.

Many newspapers have reprinted the cartoons - including one depicting Mohammed with a turban-shaped bomb on his head - in a show of support for the Danish paper, Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten.

A BBC spokesperson said the cartoons were being used "responsibly and in full context to give audiences an understanding of the strong feelings evoked by the story".

- AFP