An estimated ten thousand Muslims protested outside of Google’s British headquarters in London today, calling upon the tech and search engine giant to remove a video that they believe mocks Islam.
The protesters carried various signs with slogans such as, “Freedom of speech = hatred to Muslims?” and “We love our prophet more than our lives,” and chanted sayings about Allah and Mohammed. Islamic imams also delivered speeches as well.
The gathering surrounds an amateur film called “Innocence of Muslims,” which was posted to YouTube by a Californian movie producer this past summer. The film reportedly depicts Mohammed as being a pedophile and womanizer.
Masoud Alam, the organizer for the event, told reporters today, “This is not freedom of expression; there is a limit for that. This insult of the Prophet will not be allowed.”
“Terrorism is not just people who kill human bodies, but who kill human feelings as well,” added Sheikh Faiz Al-Aqtab Siddiqui. “The makers of this film have terrorized 1.6 billion people.”
Alam said that Muslims will continue to organize protests until the video is taken down. However, Google stated that it has no plans to ban the film.
“This can be a challenge because what’s okay in one country can be offensive elsewhere,” remarked an unnamed Google spokesperson. “This video — which is widely available on the Web — is clearly within our guidelines and so will stay on YouTube.”
A million Muslim protest is planned for Hyde Park in England in the coming weeks.