paris (ap) | French police called Tuesday, Oct. 5, for an investigation into the sale of dolls modeled on Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and suicide bombers at a store in the capital, judicial officials said.
The police appeal to government prosecutors could lead to an investigation of suspected “apologizing for terrorism,” the officials said on condition of anonymity.
A figurine found recently by police in a southern Paris shop featured a child suicide bomber equipped with “terrorist” gear, the officials said.
While the only one found by police, the toy had packaging with images of others that resembled the al-Qaida leader and the deposed Iraqi leader holding up their fingers in a “V” shape for “victory.”
The toys, which reportedly arrived in Paris in recent weeks, were made in China and shipped to France by an importer from a working-class suburb northeast of Paris, the officials said.
The Oct. 5 edition of daily Le Parisien featured photos of the so-called “warfare puppetry” sporting toy grenades, walkie-talkies, guns and knives. The dolls, priced at the equivalent of $7.99 each, can sing, dance to accompaniment music, and throw grenades and guns, the report said.
The toys come in six versions, and their wrapping shows a map of Iraq covered with images of tanks and attack helicopters, Le Parisien reported. The dolls come with a warning that they are not to be used by children under the age of 3 because of the risk of swallowing the miniature rockets that come with some of the toys, according to the report.