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Inter Milan football strip 'offends Muslims'
By Megan Levy
Last Updated: 2:23am GMT 13/12/2007
A football strip worn by Italian team Inter Milan is at the centre of a legal row after a lawyer claimed it offended "Muslim sensibilities".
Inter Milan jersey
The 'offensive' Inter Milan strip
Players wore the new strip – a white shirt with large red cross on it – in a Champions League match last month against Turkish team Fenerbahçe to celebrate the club’s centenary.
But a Turkish lawyer, Baris Kaska, took exception to the "Crusader-style" cross which he said symbolised "Western racist superiority over Islam".
He claimed the offending shirt reminded Turks of an emblem of the Christian order of the Knights Templar.
Mr Kaska, who specialises in European law, has lodged a complaint in a local court against the club.
He is seeking damages, and is appealing to Uefa to annul the match, which Inter Milan won 3-0.
Mr Kaska told the Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia: "That cross only brings one thing to mind - the symbol of the Templar Knights.
"It made me think immediately of the bloody days of the past. While I was watching the game I felt profound grief in my soul."
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He said the court had contacted both Uefa and Fifa to convey his demand that Inter Milan should be "heavily fined for displaying an offensive symbol".
Inter Milan officials are reportedly "astounded" at the controversy.
They have pointed out that a red cross on a white background was the symbol of the city of Milan, and that many Italian football clubs have incorporated the cross on their shirts.
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