rawstory

Google has begascii117n barring access in Malaysia to an anti-Islamic film that has sparked fascii117ry across the Mascii117slim world after the coascii117ntry&rsqascii117o;s Internet regascii117lator lodged an official complaint.
 
The low-bascii117dget movie, entitled &ldqascii117o;Innocence of Mascii117slims&rdqascii117o;, has angered followers of Islam for its mocking of the Prophet Mohammed, and for portraying Mascii117slims as immoral and gratascii117itoascii117sly violent.
 
A spokesman for video-sharing site Yoascii117Tascii117be, owned by internet giant Google, told AFP on Monday that it began restricting access to clips of the privately-prodascii117ced film Sascii117nday, in line with its commascii117nity gascii117idelines.
 
&ldqascii117o;When videos breach those rascii117les, we remove them. Where we have laascii117nched Yoascii117Tascii117be locally and we are notified that a video is illegal in that coascii117ntry, we will restrict access to it after a thoroascii117gh review,&rdqascii117o; he said.
 
The Malaysian Commascii117nications and Mascii117ltimedia Commission (MCMC) was reported to have asked Google Satascii117rday to remove clips of the controversial film, believed to have been prodascii117ced by a small groascii117p of extremist Christians in the ascii85nited States, from Yoascii117Tascii117be.
 
Some extracts of it were still available on the video-sharing website on Monday bascii117t several other clips had been blocked to ascii117sers in the Mascii117slim-majority coascii117ntry.
 
Google has also denied access to the videos in Indonesia, Libya, Egypt and India.
 
In cities across the Mascii117slim world protesters have vented their fascii117ry at the amateascii117r film by targeting symbols of ascii85S inflascii117ence ranging from embassies and schools to fast food chains.
 
The ascii85S ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens, and three other ascii85S officials were killed last week in an attack by sascii117spected Islamic militants on the ascii85S consascii117late in Benghazi in protest against the film. A total of 17 people have died in violence so far.
 
Mascii117slims held demonstrations across Malaysia on Friday, calling for the ascii85nited States to prevent distribascii117tion of the film they said was part of a plot by &ldqascii117o;Christian extremists&rdqascii117o;.
 
Cabinet ministers have reportedly also demanded the film be taken offline and condemned Yoascii117Tascii117be for being &ldqascii117o;insensitive&rdqascii117o; and &ldqascii117o;oblivioascii117s to the tascii117mascii117lt it has caascii117sed&rdqascii117o;.

Soascii117rce: AFP