LONDON: More than 100 public figures — including politicians, journalists and academics — have signed an open letter to the BBC criticizing a “disappointing and strikingly hostile” interview with the first female secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB).
Zara Mohammed, 29, was repeatedly asked how many female imams there were in Britain by Emma Barnett, presenter of the BBC Radio 4 program “Woman’s Hour,” during an interview on Feb. 4.
The letter called on the BBC to commit to programs ensuring diverse production and editorial teams, and to issue a statement recommitting to engaging with Muslim women and those from historically marginalized communities in good faith.
It said “the interview appeared intent on re-enforcing damaging and prejudicial tropes about Islam and Muslim women,” and the tone of the interview “must be seriously assessed.”
Mohammed, a Glaswegian consultant, became the first woman to lead the MCB, as well as its youngest.
“Despite Mohammed’s repeated claims that religious adjudication was not within the parameters of her role leading a civil society organization, Barnett asked the question about female imams four times, each time interrupting Mohammed’s answer,” the letter stated.
“The framing of the interview and clipping up of the ‘female imam’ segment for social media mirrored the style and tone of an accountability interview with a politician, rather than authentically recognizing and engaging in what this represented for British Muslim women.”
The BBC allegedly removed the original tweet with a clip of Mohammed’s interview after receiving complaints.
BBC criticized for ‘strikingly hostile’ interview with Muslim female leader
https://arab.news/zcusw
BBC criticized for ‘strikingly hostile’ interview with Muslim female leader
- Over 100 public figures have written to the broadcaster in protest
- Zara Mohammed is the first female head of the Muslim Council of Britain
Afghan Taliban says Pakistan bombs Kabul in fresh escalation
KABUL: The Afghan government said on Friday that Pakistan had carried out fresh strikes on Kabul and several other provinces.
Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a post on X that Kabul, Kandahar, Paktia, Paktika, and some other areas, were targeted.
Pakistan has killed at least 641 Afghan Taliban operatives and injured more than 855 in the ongoing conflict between the two sides since last month, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Wednesday.
Islamabad has said its airstrikes, which have at times directly targeted the Afghan Taliban government, are aimed at ending Kabul’s support for militants carrying out attacks on Pakistan. The Taliban has denied aiding militant groups.
Fresh clashes between the two neighbors began on Feb. 26 after Afghanistan’s border forces launched attacks against Pakistani military installations. Kabul said the attack was in retaliation for Islamabad’s airstrikes earlier in February. Both forces have since then engaged in the worst fighting between them in decades.
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have remained strained since the Afghan Taliban seized power in August 2021. Pakistan has witnessed a surge in militant attacks across the country in recent months that it blames on militants it alleges are based in Afghanistan. Kabul denies the allegations and insists that its soil is not used by militant groups for attacks against other countries.
While Afghanistan has voiced the desire for dialogue, Pakistan has repeatedly ruled out talks, saying it will continue targeting militant hideouts through “Operation Ghazab lil Haq” until Kabul desists from supporting militants.
