Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Aug 24, 2007 / 07:10 am
The Malaysian newspaper Makkal Osai is facing calls to shut down after it published an image of Jesus holding a cigarette and what appears to be a can of beer on its front page.
Malaysia's Muslim-led government closed two publications last year for carrying controversial cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. Now some members of Malaysia's minority religions say they want the same treatment over this latest incident, reported the BBC.
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi criticized the action as hurtful and an insult to Christians. He called on people not to play with religion, the national news agency Bernama reported.
The paper has issued an apology, explaining that a graphics editor had mistakenly taken the image from the Internet.