George Clooney Hits Back At Religiously Offensive & Inflammatory Daily Mail Article

George Clooney has responded to a Daily Mail article which alleged his fiancé's mother was unhappy with her daughter marrying outside their religion. The 53-year-old actor was seemingly so appalled by the Mail's blatant display of religious insensitivity that he felt he had to directly address the claims. He penned a short essay which was published on USA Today.

George Clooney released a statement in response to the article.

The article, written on Monday (7th July) claimed Amal Alamuddin's mother Baria, had been telling "half of Beirut" she did not approve of the marriage as Clooney is not a Druze. Druze is a religion stemming from Shia Islam which is particularly prominent in the Eastern Mediterranean, including Lebanon where Baria and Amal Alauddin originate from. The article further alleged those who married outside of the Druze religion often suffered social persecution and the deaths of both brides and grooms have apparently been reported.

Clooney stated how "factually none of the story is true," but his concern did not lie with the truth but how religious factions were being portrayed. Clooney wrote how he "seldom responds to tabloids, unless it involves someone else and their safety or well being," and citied a number of instances where he had kept quiet about reports which had little, if any, basis in fact. These included "stories of Amal being pregnant, or that the marriage will take place on the set of Downton Abbey, or that I'm running for office."

Amal Alamuddin and Clooney became engaged in April 2014.

But this time, Clooney's concern for how the paper had been religiously intolerant and created a stereotype was more important than his privacy. He also feared the paper would "inflame" religious differences and incite violence. He wrote "the irresponsibility, in this day and age, to exploit religious differences where none exist, is at the very least negligent and more appropriately dangerous."

Whilst Clooney mentioned how the article and the sources they used had been picked up on by numerous news outlets, he emphasised how the Mail is particularly unscrupulous in its approach to 'news'. Clooney wrote "The Daily Mail, more than any other organization that calls itself news, has proved time and time again that facts make no difference in the articles they make up. And when they put my family and my friends in harm's way, they cross far beyond just a laughable tabloid and into the arena of inciting violence."

Clooney and Alamuddin announced their engagement in April of this year. Alamuddin is a highly successful barrister best known for defending WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. The couple are reportedly set to marry in Italy in September.

George Clooney at the London premiere of his latest film Monuments Men.