Iran boycotts 2013 Oscars to protest anti-Islam film

Iran’s minister of culture and Islamic guidance has announced Islamic Republic’s decision to boycott the 2013 Oscars in protest to the US-made blasphemous movie mocking Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

“I officially announce that we will not attend the [2013] Oscars in serious reaction to the intolerable insult against the Prophet of Islam (PBUH), and call on other Muslim states to follow suit in order to show their protest,” Seyyed Mohammad Hosseini said on Monday.

“Everyone is aware of the profane film insulting the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and the ensuing reactions. This film has wrenched the hearts of all Muslims and our filmmakers have strongly condemned it, though it is devoid of any artistic value,” the Iranian minister added.

Acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Reza Mirkarimi’s dramatic comedy A Cube of Sugar had been named for the 2013 Oscars’ foreign-language film submission.

Mirkarimi’s latest feature-length movie is about a family who lives in an old Iranian city and recounts the story of their attempts to deal with different problems and incidents.

The film has been screened in several national and international film festivals, including the 2011 Montreal International Film Festival, the 2011 Busan International Film festival, the 2012 Lucania Film Festival and the 2012 Spain’s Cines Del Sur Film Festival.

Outrage is growing globally over a US-made movie which has been funded by Zionist donors.

The anti-Islam movie has triggered days of huge demonstrations in Muslim countries, as well as in non-Muslim states like Australia, Britain, the United States, France, Belgium and some other countries.