Mob torches Iraqi TV station accused of 'insulting religion'

A mob stormed and set fire to an Iraqi television station Monday, a security source told AFP, over its airing of a "festive" programme on a religious day of mourning.

On Sunday, Shiite-majority Iraq commemorated the killing of the Prophet Mohammed's grandson Hussein in 680 AD, with ceremonies held nationwide.

The same day, local television station Dijlah aired a regularly scheduled programme that included singing and dancing, irking Iraqis who saw the tone as inappropriate.

Dijlah swiftly apologised, saying it was an "unintended" mistake, but many had already taken offence.

"Today, several dozen protesters angry at the festive programme stormed Dijlah's Baghdad bureau in the eastern district of Jadiriyah," a security source told AFP on Monday.

"They torched the office. Four of Dijlah's employees were wounded, and much of the bureau's equipment was destroyed," the source added.

Several Dijlah employees resigned in protest after the broadcast, and half a dozen Iraqi provinces immediately banned the channel.

A Baghdad court on Monday also issued an arrest warrant for Dijlah's administrative head Jamal al-Karbuli, who spends most of his time outside Iraq, for "intentionally insulting the rites of a religious sect".

According to Iraq's penal code, insulting religion can carry a prison sentence of up to three years.

The court also asked Iraq's Communications and Media Commission (CMC), which regulates the work of press outlets, to take action.

In January, the CMC ordered Dijlah to close for a month following its coverage of anti-government protests.

Masked gunmen raided the station's Baghdad office in the first week of rallies in October 2019, and on January 10, one of its correspondents and his cameraman were gunned down in the southern city of Basra.