The woman condemned terrorism in the interview with Krishnan Guru-Murthy in Rusholme, South Manchester
A MUSLIM woman left viewers bemused when she wore a burka with “love” spelled out with guns and grenades during a TV news interview.
The woman was one of a group of Muslims interviewed by journalist Krishnan Guru-Murthy for Channel 4 News in the wake of the Manchester terror attack.
The interviewee, who gave her name only as “Sid”, tells him she is "devastated" about the bombing and denounces extremism, saying: "This is not what our Islam teaches us."
But viewers were left questioning if the whole thing was some kind of sick joke after noticing her burka was emblazoned with the word “love” – spelled out in weapons.
The 'L' is a pistol, the 'O' is in the shape of a grenade, a pocket knife makes up the 'V' and the 'E' is a machine gun.
Critics took to social media to brand the woman's choice of attire "disgusting" while others slammed her for "taking the p***".
Iain Corser tweeted: "Channel 4 news contributor in full hibab, top to toe with comedy glasses, images of knife & hand grenade emblazoned across the front! Ffs."
Another Twitter user said: "Channel 4 actually broadcast this. Nothing says love like a hand grenade & flick-knife."
And Robert Sexton wrote: "No words honestly."
Another tweeted: “Unbelievable, that burka says it all, what were channel 4 thinking.”
And one said: “Their argument would be that the word love is created from the objects of hate. It's still clumsy and insensitive. The burka just feel wrong”
Katie Hopkins even joined the chorus of outrage, tweeting: “The killers community laugh in our face. @Channel4News and @bendepear gave them a platform to do so.”
The controversial clip was broadcast on Wednesday evening.
Guru-Murthy interviewed a group of Muslims from the Rusholme area of Manchester, which is home to the largest Libyan community in Europe.
He spoke to Ayub Shabani, who attended the same mosque as Manchester bomber Salman Abedi, before turning his microphone to Sid.
Asked about the consequences of the attack, she replies: "Basically it is devastating to hear what has happened.
"When I found out the news, what can I say? It was devastating…"
She adds: "I don't need to prove anything. I'm a good Muslim, I know I'm a good Muslim, my friends, everyone I interact with, they know I'm a good Muslim.
"I'm not here to prove anything, but I'm here to say that we need to stand together, stand united, and help fight this. As Manchester, we are standing together.
"I was at the vigil yesterday, fantastic crowd. We were there together to support each other and that is what we are here for. We will tackle it together."
The newsreader then asks: "What do you think the result of this will be? Do you think the backlash will feed radical young people here?"
She responds: "I don't want to think that far. I want to tackle it before anything happens. I want to help our community, the world.
"Yes, Islamophobia will probably rise. There have been attacks on Muslim women.
"Hate with hate. People will retaliate.
"It is all about ignorance. It is all about awareness. We need to make people aware of what Islam is really about, as that is not what our Islam teaches us."
A spokesperson for Channel 4 told The Sun Online: “When it was brought to our attention that the woman being interviewed by Krishnan Guru-Murthy was wearing a gun-themed t-shirt, we removed the online versions to investigate.
“We are now satisfied that the intention of that image is to subvert weaponry and is an anti-violence protest t-shirt.
“The image was made famous in 2013 when the singer Jennifer Hudson was pictured wearing a very similar design, which spelled out the word ‘love’ in guns and other weapons. She told fans ‘it’s time to turn all of that into this LOVE’.”
Channel 4 said the video was now back online.
