DAN BROWN - DA VINCI CODE BANNED IN IRAN

No new editions of DAN BROWN's novel THE DA VINCI CODE will be published in Iran following protests from Christians in the Islamic country. The eight existing editions of the controversial book which have been translated into Persian can still legally be sold, but no further versions will be given permission to be published. RON HOWARD's Hollywood adaptation of Brown's bestseller has not been released in Iran. An Iranian Culture Ministry spokesperson says the ruling is "based on the request of three Christian clerics". There are approximately 100,000 Christians in Iran, a nation of 69 million Muslims.