BBC pulls talkshow in racism row
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- The BBC has suspended a popular daily talkshow after its presenter wrote a newspaper article calling Arabs "suicide bombers, limb amputators, women repressors."
Talk show host Robert Kilroy-Silk, a former MP with the ruling Labour Party, angered racial equality bodies with his column which asked whether Arab nations had contributed anything to civilization.
The BBC said it would suspend his "Kilroy" talkshow from Monday while it conducts an internal investigation into the article in the Sunday Express newspaper.
"The BBC strongly disassociates itself from the views expressed," the publicly funded broadcaster said in a statement. "We stress that these comments do not reflect the views of the BBC."
Kilroy-Silk was not available for comment.
The article, headlined "We owe the Arabs nothing," asked: "What do (Arabs) think we feel about them? That we admire them for being suicide bombers, limb amputators, women repressors?"
Trevor Phillips, chairman of the publicly funded Commission for Racial Equality, said it was "indisputably stupid."
"Our lawyers have considered the column and, in the light of widespread concern, we are referring the article to the police to consider whether it might constitute an offence under the Public Order Act," Phillips said on Thursday.
Iqbal Sacranie, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, complained to the BBC and the Press Complaints Commission.
"Kilroy" was launched on the BBC 15 years ago and attracts an estimated 1.2 million viewers with discussions on topical issues.
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