Trolls attack British Islamic organisation after it tweets misleading picture to announce marriage

A Nottingham, England-based Islamic Da'wah Centre is being trolled on social media after it tweeted a misleading picture, accompanied by a confusing caption to announce the marriage of a couple.

In the photo shared by Nottingham Islam Information Point on their official Twitter account, two men could be seen standing next to each other and flashing a small smile at the camera. 

"Mabrook, congratulations to John and Zulkiful for getting married earlier this evening. Alhamdulillah, we conducted their Nikah and issued the certificate.  May Allah accept their marriage and keep them united throughout their lives...ameen. Thank you for the wonderful food."

As Zulkiful appears to be a unisex name, social media users mistakenly presumed that the Centre had performed a same-sex marriage — something which is forbidden in Islam.

The tweet unleashed a storm of controversy on social media within a few minutes of going live. While some people lashed out at the Nottingham Islam Information Point over the confusing tweet, others simply made light of the situation.

The centre first sent several tweets to clarify its position, stating that the two men in the picture represent the groom and the Imam who performed the Nikah, as sharing women's pictures on social media is not appropriate.

"Please note: Sister Zulkiful is not in the picture because we don't flaunt our women on social media. The Imam is on the right, congratulating the groom on his Nikah," Nottingham Islam tweeted to clarify. 

The explanation, however, fell on deaf ears as people continued to criticise the centre out.

In response, Nottingham Islam stated: "We ask Allah to grant you more insight on masculine and feminine names... ameen. No need to delete or amend."

As the confusion and criticism grew, however, the centre later deleted the tweet. Nonetheless, social media users were quick to grab screenshots, which went viral across the globe.