Jihad for Love

Channel 4 has come under fire from Islamic leaders over a television documentary showing how gay and lesbian Muslims suffer under their laws.

Its director has already had death threats. Now station chiefs are bracing themselves for a backlash. Its digital channel More 4 will show A Jihad For Love tonight.

It lifts the lid on the battle gay and lesbian Muslims face as they struggle with their faith and their sexuality. The documentary not only shows gay Muslims daring to kiss, holding hands and talking about getting married, it also provides harrowing reports on the suffering they have faced under Islamic law. And it reveals the death threats and punishments handed out to gays in countries including Egypt and Iran.

Indian film maker Parvez Sharma – who spent six years making the programme – revealed: I have had death threats on my blog after making this film. Some countries have even banned it. I've been called an apostate because Muslims think I have insulted Islam but I think it will open up a debate.

Islamic leaders in the UK have attacked the documentary, saying it will offend, anger and shock. An Imam from Europe's largest mosque The Baitul Futuh based in Surrey condemned the film last night, saying: These people should not be confessing their sins to the television cameras. They should be doing it in private to God and seeking forgiveness.”

Last night a Channel 4 spokesman defended the documentary. She said: This is a sensitively made documentary that has played to critical acclaim at film festivals internationally and is a legitimate area for a documentary film-maker to explore.

True Stories: A Jihad For Love will be shown on More 4 at 10pm tonight.

At this year's Istanbul International Film Festival, one of the major attractions is A Jihad for Love , a documentary about a taboo subject: homosexuality in Islamic countries. Homosexuality is strictly banned in most interpretations of the Koran. This is the first time the film is being screened in a Muslim country.

The ending of A Jihad for Love , was greeted with rapturous applause from a packed audience. The film, which Indian Muslim director Pervez Sharma filmed in 12 countries and took six years to make, is an intimate look at the lives of 12 gay Muslim men and women.

Much of the material was filmed in secret in Muslim countries that ban homosexuality. But Sharma says the film is as much about the Muslim faith as it is about homosexuality: It shows people, Islam is not a problematic monolith, but that is lived in very diverse ways, in different countries, that it is living religion. It is the world's fastest growing religion, for a reason, and it certainly enables the discourse about Islam to shift. It takes it away from violence and takes it towards love, and that is why I called the film A Jihad for Love .

While homosexuality is legal in Muslim-majority Turkey, it remains a taboo subject for many. This member of the audience appreciated that the wall of silence was broken.

The response was not all positive. Several of Turkey's Islamic newspapers condemned the film, calling it an attack on the Islamic faith. According to orthodox interpretations of the Koran, homosexuality is strictly forbidden.

The film and its filmmakers will tour the world for the next couple of years. Screenings are planned in India and Indonesia. The filmmakers hope the Arab world will eventually open its doors and allow A Jihad for Love to be seen.