The Telegraph newspaper has apologised to a Muslim mother and agreed to pay her compensation after publishing an article earlier this year which linked her to “Islamic extremism.”
The article, which has now been taken off the Telegraph’s website, was written by the journalist Andrew Gilligan who is widely considered in the Muslim community to have published several Islamophobic pieces. Gilligan now works for The Times.
The article mentioned Ifhat Smith, whose son was questioned under the Prevent strategy after he used the word “eco-terrorist” in a French lesson. The article claimed there was an organised campaign by Muslim extremists to undermine Britain’s fight against terrorism.
The article said: “The boy’s mother, Ifhat Smith, who took the story to the media, presented herself as a traumatised ordinary Londoner. She is in fact an activist in the Prevent Watch campaign and a key figure in the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, which believes in replacing secular democratic government with Islamic government.
However, in an apology today the Telegraph backtracked on those claims.
“In an article on January 31st ‘Muslim extremists’ ‘campaign of lies’ to undermine the government’s fight against terror’, we made reference to Ifhat Smith, a mother who brought to public attention the questioning of her son at school under the government’s Prevent policy after he used the word ‘eco-terrorist’ in a French lesson.
“We wish to make clear that Mrs Smith is not a member of or affiliated to the Muslim Brotherhood or an Islamic extremist and that in fact her complaint over her son’s treatment was brought in good faith. We apologise to Mrs Smith for any contrary impression and for the distress the article, and our editorial, caused her; we have agreed to pay her appropriate compensation accordingly.”
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