Merton council have asked for a film poster to be removed from outside a mosque as a sign of “respect”.
Twitter user Christopher Halkou, 20, contacted Merton Council to ask if the poster, for Bradley Cooper’s new film ‘Burnt’, should be taken down.
The council responded that they had contacted the owners of the advertising board, who had agreed to take it down.
Mr Halkou's Twitter account has since been made private.
The Baitul Futuh Mosque, on London Road, Morden, was the victim of a large fire last Saturday, September 26.
Ten fire engines and 70 firefighters tackled the blaze, and managed to avoid it spreading to the mosque itself, although a nearby administration building was badly damaged.
Two teenage boys were arrested on suspicion of arson following the fire, and a 14-year-old has been bailed until early January.
The council’s response to the film poster has divided opinion.
BREAKING: @Merton_Council brand Bradley Cooper OFFENSIVE to Muslims. @BurntMovie https://t.co/tM7U5ppwPH pic.twitter.com/dz1ZVfuuVE
— Nonjob (@nonjob1) October 1, 2015
@Chris_Halkou @Merton_Council more important things to worry about than the juxtaposition of a poster with a burned out mosque.
— Anglicus Apikorus (@Fahrenheit211) October 1, 2015
@Chris_Halkou @Merton_Council Is the film REALLY that bad?
— Blear's Weetabix (@BlearsCat) October 1, 2015
@nonjob1 @Merton_Council @Chris_Halkou Can someone please explain to me why this is regarded as offensive?
— Kevin Sloman (@CaptnCrash) October 1, 2015
@TheoOfTheNorth @Chris_Halkou @Merton_Council Oh. Shame about the fire but the billboard isn't to blame .
— Eden Apocalypse (@Apocalypse_End) October 1, 2015
Oh @ImranUddin2003 @Merton_Council this should have been removed from outside Mitcham Parish Church too.. took 2 wks pic.twitter.com/CP3rzGxmIO
— Mabel Fonge (Miss) (@MabelFonge) October 1, 2015
Halkou has also received a torrent of abuse since sending the tweet, including death threats and homophobic insults.
He said: "I have Muslim friends and we had been discussing the fire when it was on the news. I thought just the word "Burnt" outside a mosque that has clearly been torched, there's black marks all over it, was a little distasteful.
"I was quite shocked, quite overwhelmed by the reaction.
"The tweet didn't have any religious aspect to it. It was really a tweet of empathy towards a mosque that's been burnt down and people who must be upset about it. I would have said the same if it had beena church or a synagogue.
"I'm still proud that I sent it. That's what I believe. Anything I support or agree with or think is right, I will make my views known."
Mr Halkou was supported by Councillor Imran Uddin for St Helier, who tweeted:
@Chris_Halkou @Merton_Council thank you Chris for spotting this one and for the prompt action.
— Imran Uddin (@ImranUddin2003) October 1, 2015
Speaking after he sent the tweet, Councillor Uddin said that he was not personally offended by the poster, but had been expressing thanks that someone outside of the Muslim community had been thinking of the mosque.
He said: "It’s something to be thankful for that it was someone who is not a Muslim doing that.
“The reason I thanked him was to congratulate his sensitivity and generosity of spirit for doing that and thinking about Muslims like that.
“When someone has suffered a loss – a community, a group, an individual – who aren’t part of your life, and you’re sensitive to that and see that, I thought that was the best in British values and I wanted to congratulate him for that and thank him for that.”
A spokesman for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association, Jamal Akbar, said: "We have had so much support from the local community on Twitter and personal messages who want to help us, so for us this is pretty minor.
"We're not really concerned about it."
What do you think about the poster? Leave a comment below.
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