Thousands of protesters, many brandishing clubs and swords, took to the streets of Sudan’s capital Friday, demanding the execution of a British teacher who let her students name a teddy bear Muhammad. Gillian Gibbons, 54, was found guilty Thursday of insulting Islam and sentenced to 15
days in jail. She was spared the more serious punishment of 40 lashes.
That angered many in Khartoum, who rallied in Martyrs Square outside the presidential palace. Protesters waved sticks, knives, axes and swords.“Kill her, kill her by firing squad!” they chanted. “No tolerance, execution!”
Others shouted, “Shame, shame on the U.K.” A cleric at Khartoum’s main Martyrs Mosque claimed Gibbons had intentionally insulted the Muslim faith. “This an arrogant woman who came to our country, cashing her salary in dollars, teaching our children hatred of our Prophet Muhammad,” Abdul-Jalil Nazeer al-Karouri told worshippers at a Friday sermon. “Imprisoning this lady does not satisfy the thirst of Muslims in Sudan,” he said. MORE