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Judge Sides With MBTA Over Pro-Israel Ad

BOSTON - A federal judge has sided with the MBTA over a subway ad proposed by a pro-Israel group.

The ad was funded by the American Freedom Defense Initiative, which seeks to combat what it calls the spread of radical Islam in the United States. It read: "In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man. Support Israel; defeat Jihad."

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority officials rejected the ad on the basis that it violated agency advertising guidelines because it is "demeaning or disparaging."

The judge last week agreed with the transit agency that it was plausible "to conclude that the ... pro-Israel advertisement demeans or disparages Muslims or Palestinians."

A lawyer for the group that proposed the ad tells The Boston Globe an appeal will be filed.

This program aired on December 24, 2013. The audio for this program is not available.

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