Within hours of its official release at midnight on September 16, Grand Theft Auto V was already being blamed by parental organisations for an upswing in violent activity across the Middle East.

“In the week of GTA V’s launch we’ve witnessed unprovoked attacks in Iraq, shootings in Afghanistan, sectarian violence in Lebanon, street clashes in Egypt, tribal warfare in Yemen, drone strikes in Pakistan, warmongering in Israel and don’t even get me started on Syria,” said Heather Chode of the International Mothers Against Violence In Videogames Association.

“Clearly this appalling game has had an immediate impact in normalising violence and teaching impressionable adolescents that violence is an acceptable form of conflict resolution, and should be banned with immediate effect before the situation worsens.”