Barbie banned in Kuwait as Lebanon urges action

The Barbie movie has been banned successful Kuwait and faces calls for a prohibition successful Lebanon amid disapproval successful the Arab satellite of the movie's societal values.

Kuwait acted to support "public ethics", the authorities quality bureau said. Lebanon's civilization curate accused the movie of "promoting homosexuality".

The blockbuster is nevertheless being shown successful blimpish countries successful the region, including Saudi Arabia.

The movie has grossed implicit $1bn worldwide wrong weeks of its release.

Lafi al-Subaiei, the caput of Kuwait's committee of movie classification, said that usually the committee asks for movie scenes deemed to flout his country's civilization to beryllium cut.

But erstwhile they beforehand behaviour the authorities thinks is unacceptable, they are banned outright.

The movie "promulgate[s] ideas and beliefs that are alien to Kuwaiti nine and nationalist order", a spokesperson for the Kuwaiti Ministry of Information said.

On Wednesday, the Lebanese Culture Minister Mohammad Mortada asked the interior ministry to "take each indispensable measures to ban" Barbie.

He said the movie "promotes homosexuality and transsexuality… supports rejecting a father's guardianship, undermines and ridicules the relation of the mother, and questions the necessity of matrimony and having a family".

Following Mr Mortada's call, the Lebanese interior curate and authorities justice Bassam Mawlawi asked the country's censorship committee to reappraisal the film.

The curate is supported by the Shia Islamist question Hezbollah. Last period its person said homosexuality posed an "imminent danger" to Lebanese nine and called connected authorities to prohibition events that are seen the beforehand it.

The determination comes amid "a question of bigotry" successful the country, Ayman Mhanna, enforcement manager of the Samir Kassir Foundation, a Lebanese rights organisation, told Reuters quality agency.

"This is portion of a broader run that is bringing unneurotic Hezbollah, the Christian acold right, and different apical spiritual leaders successful a focused run against LGBT people," Ms Mhanna said.

The movie has besides fallen foul of censors elsewhere, including successful Vietnam for featuring a representation showing a contested Chinese territorial assertion successful the South China Sea.

Starring Margot Robbie arsenic Barbie and Ryan Gosling arsenic Ken, the movie tells a coming-of-age communicative of the children's quality wherever she explores her individuality and encourages chap Mattel Inc dolls to explicit individuality.