Virgin Radio Dubai fired a South African DJ for impersonating God on air, the show's management said Wednesday.
Revin John, host of Breakfast Xpress, was fired over a mock-telephone conversation with God that he performed on his show Monday.
"He intended to be funny, not to offend anybody," said Arabian Radio Network executive Steve Smith. "However, what he did was highly offensive to the Muslim and Christian community in the [United Arab Emirates.]"
Arab Media Group, which runs the station, allowed John back on air to apologize Tuesday before letting him go.
Mariam Zarouni, a 20-year-old student at the American University of Sharjah, formed a group to protest on social networking site Facebook.
In the group, which had 655 members by Thursday morning, she wrote that John pretended to interview God, whom he portrayed with a "deep voice."
One of the questions he posed to the Almighty in the sketch was, "God, what is on your agenda?"
John, responding in character, replied, "World peace, Madonna and Britney."
The sketch was in response to an article about a U.S. court throwing out a lawsuit against God.
The network said listeners of "diverse faiths and nationalities" lodged complaints.
John told Gulf News, an English-language newspaper in Dubai, in a June interview that he researched the Middle Eastern market thoroughly before arriving.
"The adage 'know your audience' was my starting point," he was quoted as saying.
Dubai is the most liberal and cosmopolitan of the seven states of the United Arab Emirates, a conservative Muslim country.
Virgin Dubai Radio is the only branch of Richard Branson's radio brand in the Middle East.
The station, launched in January, plays mostly European and American pop music.
With files from the Associated Press
