The BBC Asian Network today sparked outrage after asking listeners if they 'respected' a teenagers' decision to flee Saudi Arabia amid fears her life was in danger.
Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun had planned to enter Australia on a tourist visa and seek asylum before she was detained by Thai authorities on Sunday.
The 18-year-old fears her family will kill her if she were sent home to Saudi Arabia, where she has renounced Islam and 'rebelled' against her father.
After a discussion about the teenager, the BBC Twitter account asked followers if they 'respected her decision.'
.... The BBC has since apologised for the ill-advised tweet, but has faced a furious backlash from social media users.
In a tweet, the BBC said: 'We have deleted the tweet about our earlier discussion on Rahuf al-Qunun.
'The question we asked on air 'How do you feel about the 18 year old Saudi woman's decision to leave her family and religion?' was aimed at our listeners who had faced similar dilemmas in their own life regarding family and religion. [Daily Mail] Read more
