A BBC programme has ammended a trailer and programme which suggested the raising of the index finger was a ‘Islamic State salute’.
The Panorama documentary which airs today (8pm) is fronted by Stacey Dooley who went to meet brides of Islamic State fighters in a Syrian refugee camp.
It has now been confirmed the clip has now been removed from the programme and will not appear on iPlayer.
During the trailer there was a suggestion however that the raising of the Index finger was an Islamic State salute. Something that was immediately disputed.
The raising of the Index finger is commonplace across the Muslim world with counteless sports stars and atheletes regularly doing so in celebration.
On Twitter Oz Katerji said, “The BBC has just published a story from an upcoming Panorama episode in which Stacey Dooley refers to a raised finger of Tawheed as an ISIS salute. There is simply no excuse for ignorance like this.”
The BBC has just published a story from an upcoming Panorama episode in which Stacey Dooley refers to a raised finger of Tawheed as an "ISIS salute". There is simply no excuse for ignorance like this.
— Oz Katerji (@OzKaterji) August 4, 2019
Producer Anesa Subedar said this was due to religious and cultural ignorance on the part of the programme makers
This is what happens when you pass over real journalists to cover these kinds of stories - those that require cultural sensitivity and compassion.
— Anisa Subedar (@TheAnisaSubedar) August 5, 2019
What happened here is insulting and offensive to Muslims and journalists.
Imagine being a Muslim journalist.
She added, “The raising of the index finger is common in some Muslim footballers after they’ve scored as a symbol of a remembrance to God. Does that make them IS supporters too?."
A statement from the BBC read, “We wrongly described a gesture made by women filmed in a Kurdish controlled detention camp in Northern Syria as an ‘IS salute’.
"While IS have attempted to adopt this for their own propaganda purposes, for accuracy we should have been clear that many people of Muslim faith use this gesture to signify the oneness of Allah. We apologise for this error and have removed this description from the footage.”
Even Wikipedia seems to suggest a incorrect link,
A simple search on Google states, “”In Islam raising the index finger signifies the Tawhīd (تَوْحِيد), which denotes the indivisible oneness of God. It is used to express the unity of God ("there is no god but Allah"). The gesture has recently become widespread among supporters of political Islam and jihad, particularly members of ISIL.”
The documentary details how Kurds are now having to manage prisons and camps full of radical IS supporters. Amongst them are thousands of women who fled their birth countries to become IS brides, and around 8,000 children.
Conditions in the camps are harsh and the atmosphere is tense.
“We support #Islam."
— Panorama 🌐 (@BBCPanorama) August 5, 2019
This is the moment @StaceyDooley is confronted by some of the women
who left their homes to join the so-called Islamic State, in a camp in northern #Syria.
Some of the women held at the camp are #British. #ISBrides #BBCPanorama pic.twitter.com/TDAk9Hl9XI
You can view the trailer to the documentary here
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here