EXCLUSIVE: German Playboy Says Cover Model Sila Sahin Not Muslim, Death Threats Exaggerated
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Weeks after causing an uproar among conservative Islamic groups in Europe, German Playboy’s Editor in Chief is claiming his scantily-clad cover star is not actually a Muslim.
Nude images of the Turkish-born German soap star Sila Sahin sparked outrage from conservative Muslims who called her a “whore” and a “Western slut who has “shamed Muslim womanhood,” according to reports from the London Sun.
The Islamic Community of Germany also reportedly called for a boycott of Sihan’s German soap opera “Good Times, Bad Times.”
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But German Playboy Editor in Chief, Florian Boitin, told FOX411 exclusively in an email that his cover model isn’t even a Muslim.
“Sila isn't Muslim. Her father doesn't belong to any [religion] and her mother is Christian [sic]. And the Playboy cover with Sila Sahin is not a religious statement,” Boitin told FOX411.
Boitin continued to explain that as Editor in Chief he believed there was every reason to put Sahin on the cover to cater to a specific demographic within Germany.
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“Sila Sahin is a obviously sexy and a German-Turkish celebrity. She is well known as an actress in one of the most seen TV shows in Germany,” Boitin said. “In Germany are living three million Turkish people - and this is absolute a relevant target group.”
The majority of the Turkish community in German does adhere to the Muslim faith.
Sahin’s management did not return emails for comment.
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Muslim or not, Sahin was itching to make a statement with her sexy photo shoot, which in addition to a cover shot bearing her breast, contains full frontal nudity within the magazine. In her interview (where she does not identify herself as Muslim) Sahin compares herself to the Marxist Revolutionary Che Guevara and says the shoot was a fight against her conservative upbringing.
As for the reported security threats, Playboy’s Boitin also claims those have been exaggerated.
“The fact is also Sila and Playboy didn't receive any threats and nobody expects threats in the future,” Boitin said.
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Berlin’s police force told FOX411 they have not taken any special security measures with regards to Sahin and the television network, RTL, which airs “Good Times, Bad Times,” told us they have not enacted additional security measures.
“Currently there are no special or additional activities concerning her security from production side,” RTL spokesperson Christian Körner told Fox 411. “The studio where they produce the format is safe anyway. Beside that there is a very intensive exchange between management, production company and herself on this.”