PHOENIX -- An Arizona businessman is selling "Muhammad" teddy bears in support of a British teacher jailed in Sudan after allowing her students to name a class bear after the Islamic prophet.

"We need to be tolerant of these things," entrepreneur Mark Bold said.

Gillian Gibbons was sentenced to 15 days in jail and deportation last month after Sudanese officials said she insulted Islam and the prophet Muhammad.

The case spurred protests in which demonstrators armed with clubs and knives demanded Gibbons' execution.

"The whole thing came about because of insensitivity on her part," said Khalid Al-Mubarak, spokesman for the Sudanese Embassy in Britain.

"Newspaper headlines said, 'Shoot this woman,'" said Lord Nazir Ahmed of the British House of Lords.

Gibbons was released this week after being pardoned by the Sudanese president.

"I don't think anyone could have imagined that it could have snowballed like this," Gibbons said.

"It is just a teddy bear," said Bold said.

Bold said he couldn't believe the images of rioters in the Sudanese streets, so he decided to act.

He is marketing a teddy bear named Muhammad.

Bold said the bear's message is "tolerance. And to kind of stand up against bigotry and injustice."

Bold said since people are named Muhammad, a teddy bear shouldn't be a problem for anyone.

He stressed that the controversy revolved around children naming a teddy bear.

"So there was never an ill intent. And so, our viewpoint is, if they wanted to name the child Muhammad, let's give them a bear named Muhammad," Bold said.

The bears are for sale at TeddyBearMuhammad.com.

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Previous Stories:

Dec. 3: Briton In Teddy Bear Flap On Way Home

Dec. 1: UK Hopes To Free Teddy Bear Teacher

Nov. 30: Sudanese Want Teddy Bear Teacher Killed

Nov. 29: British Teacher Guilty In Teddy Bear Case

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