Almost 20,000 people have signed petition demanding the BBC remove a documentary exposing so-called “pleasure marriages” in which are officiated by Muslim clerics in Iraq claiming it is disrespectful to Islam.
The documentary, which is available on BBC iPlayer and titled “Undercover with The Clerics – Iraq’s Secret Sex Trade” exposes the widespread sexual enslavement of Iraqi girls, some as young as nine, in temporary marriages usually lasting just a few hours which are conducted by Shi’ite clerics.
The petition claims the documentary besmirches Iraq and Shi’ite Islam worldwide.
Speaking to the Mail Online a BBC spokesman said the corporation will not be deleting the documentary and went on to say
“This thorough investigation was conducted over an 11-month period and exposes the sexual exploitation of children and young women. The documentary fully complies with BBC Editorial Guidelines.”
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