Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Headmaster apologises, police called as parents protest at UK school after teacher shows Prophet Mohammed cartoon

Headmaster apologises, police called as parents protest at UK school after teacher shows Prophet Mohammed cartoon

Police were called to Batley Grammar School in West Yorkshire on Thursday as angry parents gathered at the school’s gates to protest the alleged showing of a Prophet Mohammed cartoon during a religious education lesson on Monday.

Local residents and parents descended on the Yorkshire grammar school on Thursday despite headmaster Gary Kibble writing a “sincere and full apology” to those offended by a picture allegedly shown in a religious studies lesson, which Kibble labelled “completely inappropriate.”

The gathering began around 7:30am on Thursday at the non-fee-paying grammar school with reports of angry parents and students chanting “Allahu akbar” (God is greater).

The school elected to delay the start of the school day until 10am due to the disturbance. At 10:30am, around 20-30 pupils were seen outside the school gates as the demonstration continued.

Despite Kibble’s attempt to diffuse the situation with his apology, locals exchanged messages on social media on Wednesday and called on each other to gather on Thursday morning. One message, which included the name of the teacher at the centre of the accusations, urged people to protest and “defend the honour of our prophet Mohammed.”

“It is imperative that all of us turn up to demand the resignation of this teacher as an absolute minimum and fulfil our duty of defending the honour of RasoolAllah,” another message read.

Videos circulating on social media show the small gathering and police presence.



A local imam claimed the school had suspended the teacher in question which was later confirmed by the headteacher.

Some Britons have taken to social media to share their outrage that such a protest, in the name of the prophet Muhammad, would take place in the UK. Conservative political commentator Darren Grimes highlighted that there are no blasphemy laws in Britain and that teachers can explore all religions and themes as they please.


Another Twitter user shared his disdain for the “fury” of parents, writing that “people who do not understand The Enlightenment & western liberal democracy are free to leave.” Others accused the school of waving the “white flag” by apologising.

Among a sea of comments criticizing the parents and pupils for their protest, there were some who acknowledged their right to be offended by the showing of the prophet during a class. Journalist, researcher and Muslim convert Robert Carter applauded Batley Grammar School for suspending the teacher, noting that after Samuel Paty’s beheading in France for showing a caricature of the prophet, this teacher “should have known better.”

The market town of Batley, like a number of places in Yorkshire, has a sizeable Muslim population. According to 2011 census data, there were almost 15,000 followers of Islam in the town of 80,000 people.

In October 2020, Paris schoolteacher Samuel Paty was beheaded by a student after he showed a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed during a lesson about free speech.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
×