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| Altar-ed ... faked snap of the Pope kissing Sheik Ahmed el-Tayeb has sparked fury in the Vatican |
A POSTER campaign showing a fake snap of the Pope kissing an Egyptian imam has been axed after sparking fury in the Vatican.
The advert, made for clothing firm Benetton's Unhate campaign, showed Benedict XVI puckering up to Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb of Cairo's Al-Azhar institute.
The two clashed when Al-Azhar suspended interfaith talks with Rome earlier this year after the Pope called for greater protection for Egypt's Christians.
The Catholic Church denounced the billboard as "unacceptable" provocation.
Vatican spokesman Rev Federico Lombardi said: "It shows a serious lack of respect for the Pope."
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| Kiss and made up ... mocked-up picture of Barack Obama smooching Hugo Chavez |
The snap was one of several showing political foes locking lips.
They included Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu planting a smacker on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and US President Barack Obama smooching Venezuela's Hugo Chavez.
Benetton — known for its controversial commercials — said the posters were aimed at fostering "global love".
But several of the images launched yesterday were quickly taken down in Milan, New York, Paris, Tel Aviv and Rome.
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| Let's be friends ... Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, left |
