Nearly 20,000 people have signed an online petition in Japan to protest US President Donald Trump and the White House's use of manga and anime characters on social media. In the most recent case, a video published on Saturday on the Truth Social platform by the Republican shows Trump as the ninja Naruto Uzumaki, from the popular series "Naruto", which provoked an indignant reaction among fans. Another publication made by the White House in March appeared to mix images of US military strikes against Iran with excerpts from well-known films and programs, including the manga and anime series "Yu-Gi-Oh!". The petition was created in March, but was reopened on Tuesday following the new "Naruto" video. The initiative is billed as an "urgent" effort to express the concerns of fans of Asian animation genres to rights holders, organizers said. "For many years, these works have inspired audiences around the world by transmitting values ​​such as courage, friendship and perseverance", states the document. "Therefore, many fans become concerned when images of works appear to be used in political or military contexts that may diverge from the intentions of the original creators or rights holders," he adds. stu/aph/mjw/arm/mvl/fp