Danish Embassy in Lebanon torched
BBC News - Sun Feb 5 2006 1045 GMT
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4682560.stm
Lebanese protesters have set the Danish embassy in Beirut on fire in protest at the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad.
Thousands of people rallied outside the building and security forces fired tear gas in an attempt to keep them at bay.
But smoke was later seen rising from the building housing the Danish mission after demonstrators broke into it.
On Saturday, Syrian protesters angered by the cartoons, torched the Danish and Norwegian embassies in Damascus.
Denmark and Norway condemned Syria for failing to stop the attacks and urged their citizens to leave the country.
The demonstration in Beirut descended into violence when Islamic extremists tried to break through security barriers protecting the embassy.
Some 2,000 army troops and riot police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them and fired their weapons into the air.
But the onslaught continued and the embassy building was set ablaze.
Witnesses said at least 10 injured people were taken away in ambulances, the AP news agency reported.
There were also reports of damage to property in a Christian area of the city.
Norway and Denmark criticised Syria for allowing Saturday's demonstration to go ahead.
CNN - Sun Feb 5 2006 1123 GMT
(CNN) -- Islamic anger over newspaper depictions of the Prophet Mohammed is boiling over into violence around the world, with protesters targeting the embassies of countries where the cartoons were published.
Smoke billowed Sunday from what appeared to be the Danish consulate in central Beirut, where hundreds of demonstrators thronged streets around the building to protest a Danish newspaper's publication of cartoons depicting Islam's revered prophet.
Wielding sticks and stones, the demonstrators attacked the building, smashing its windows.
Initially, the army did not appear to be in control, but later deployed hundreds of troops in army personnel carriers to restore order.
Sunday's demonstrations came a day after Muslims in the Syrian capital Damascus torched the Norwegian and Danish embassies.
Newspapers in both countries published images of Islam's Prophet Mohammed, which is banned by Islamic law.
Thousands of angry Muslims also protested in other cities around the world, including Islamabad, Pakistan; Baghdad, Iraq; Khartoum, Sudan; Jakarta, Indonesia; and the Palestinian territories. (Read about one Danish ambassador's meeting with protesters)
In Afghanistan, the protesters, who chanted anti-Danish slogans and burned a Danish flag in the town of Mihtarlam, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) east of Kabul., were peaceful.
They were demanding prosecution of editors of the Danish newspaper that originally published the cartoons.
Syrian officials denounced Saturday's violence in a television address, and called on protesters to exercise self-restraint, Nidal Kabalan, a Syrian TV executive, told CNN. (Full story)
But the culture editor of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, which originally published the cartoons five months ago, said there was more to the backlash than simple anger over the drawings.
"I think it's very unfortunate that now Danish interests, Danish buildings are being attacked in Syria, but let me also say that Syria is a police state, and this could not have happened if not the authorities in some way had allowed it to happen," said Flemming Rose, the editor.
A senior Western diplomatic source told CNN the protests must have been permitted by the Syrian government, which apparently felt compelled to allow people to let off steam. However, the source said, things got out of hand.
In contrast, weekend demonstrations in London were peaceful. They occurred for a second consecutive day Saturday outside the Danish Embassy, with protesters staying behind security barriers as speakers and placards condemned the cartoons.
"Britain was very responsible," said Asghar Bukari, a member of the Muslim Public Affairs Committee.
"The papers were very responsible, and you can feel it. It's good will among the general Muslim public. They don't feel this us-versus-them tension that's perhaps going around the world and in Europe."
In Pakistan, hundreds of students and teachers took to the streets of Lahore, calling for those responsible for the publication of the cartoons to be executed.
On Friday, Pakistan's government unanimously passed a resolution condemning the cartoons. (Full story)
A newspaper editor in Jordan who was fired after publishing the cartoons in the weekly tabloid Shihan urged Muslims to be reasonable.
"Who offends Islam more?" asked Jihad Momeni. "A foreigner who endeavors to draw the prophet ... or a Muslim with an explosive belt who commits suicide in a wedding party in Amman or elsewhere?"
Iran said Sunday it had recalled its ambassador to Denmark over the publication of the cartoons.
"Iran has summoned its ambassador in Denmark to Tehran," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told a news conference, according to Reuters. "Freedoms should be accompanied by responsibility."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/02/05/cartoon.protests/index.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4682560.stm
Lebanese protesters have set the Danish embassy in Beirut on fire in protest at the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad.
Thousands of people rallied outside the building and security forces fired tear gas in an attempt to keep them at bay.
But smoke was later seen rising from the building housing the Danish mission after demonstrators broke into it.
On Saturday, Syrian protesters angered by the cartoons, torched the Danish and Norwegian embassies in Damascus.
Denmark and Norway condemned Syria for failing to stop the attacks and urged their citizens to leave the country.
The demonstration in Beirut descended into violence when Islamic extremists tried to break through security barriers protecting the embassy.
Some 2,000 army troops and riot police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them and fired their weapons into the air.
But the onslaught continued and the embassy building was set ablaze.
Witnesses said at least 10 injured people were taken away in ambulances, the AP news agency reported.
There were also reports of damage to property in a Christian area of the city.
Norway and Denmark criticised Syria for allowing Saturday's demonstration to go ahead.
CNN - Sun Feb 5 2006 1123 GMT
(CNN) -- Islamic anger over newspaper depictions of the Prophet Mohammed is boiling over into violence around the world, with protesters targeting the embassies of countries where the cartoons were published.
Smoke billowed Sunday from what appeared to be the Danish consulate in central Beirut, where hundreds of demonstrators thronged streets around the building to protest a Danish newspaper's publication of cartoons depicting Islam's revered prophet.
Wielding sticks and stones, the demonstrators attacked the building, smashing its windows.
Initially, the army did not appear to be in control, but later deployed hundreds of troops in army personnel carriers to restore order.
Sunday's demonstrations came a day after Muslims in the Syrian capital Damascus torched the Norwegian and Danish embassies.
Newspapers in both countries published images of Islam's Prophet Mohammed, which is banned by Islamic law.
Thousands of angry Muslims also protested in other cities around the world, including Islamabad, Pakistan; Baghdad, Iraq; Khartoum, Sudan; Jakarta, Indonesia; and the Palestinian territories. (Read about one Danish ambassador's meeting with protesters)
In Afghanistan, the protesters, who chanted anti-Danish slogans and burned a Danish flag in the town of Mihtarlam, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) east of Kabul., were peaceful.
They were demanding prosecution of editors of the Danish newspaper that originally published the cartoons.
Syrian officials denounced Saturday's violence in a television address, and called on protesters to exercise self-restraint, Nidal Kabalan, a Syrian TV executive, told CNN. (Full story)
But the culture editor of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, which originally published the cartoons five months ago, said there was more to the backlash than simple anger over the drawings.
"I think it's very unfortunate that now Danish interests, Danish buildings are being attacked in Syria, but let me also say that Syria is a police state, and this could not have happened if not the authorities in some way had allowed it to happen," said Flemming Rose, the editor.
A senior Western diplomatic source told CNN the protests must have been permitted by the Syrian government, which apparently felt compelled to allow people to let off steam. However, the source said, things got out of hand.
In contrast, weekend demonstrations in London were peaceful. They occurred for a second consecutive day Saturday outside the Danish Embassy, with protesters staying behind security barriers as speakers and placards condemned the cartoons.
"Britain was very responsible," said Asghar Bukari, a member of the Muslim Public Affairs Committee.
"The papers were very responsible, and you can feel it. It's good will among the general Muslim public. They don't feel this us-versus-them tension that's perhaps going around the world and in Europe."
In Pakistan, hundreds of students and teachers took to the streets of Lahore, calling for those responsible for the publication of the cartoons to be executed.
On Friday, Pakistan's government unanimously passed a resolution condemning the cartoons. (Full story)
A newspaper editor in Jordan who was fired after publishing the cartoons in the weekly tabloid Shihan urged Muslims to be reasonable.
"Who offends Islam more?" asked Jihad Momeni. "A foreigner who endeavors to draw the prophet ... or a Muslim with an explosive belt who commits suicide in a wedding party in Amman or elsewhere?"
Iran said Sunday it had recalled its ambassador to Denmark over the publication of the cartoons.
"Iran has summoned its ambassador in Denmark to Tehran," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told a news conference, according to Reuters. "Freedoms should be accompanied by responsibility."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/02/05/cartoon.protests/index.html
posted by hrights @ 11:23 AM
1 Comments:
At 1:43 PM,
Anonymous said…
see Jordan Times
Post a Comment
<< Home