A television station employee was shot dead on Friday in the northwestern city of
Peshawar as violent crowds filled the streets of several cities on a day of
government-sanctioned protests against an anti-Islam film made in the United
States.
The unrest came as governments and Western institutions in many parts of the Muslim
world braced for protests after Friday Prayer an occasion often associated with
demonstrations as worshipers leave mosques.
In Tunisia, the authorities invoked emergency powers to outlaw all demonstrations,
fearing an outpouring of anti-Western protest inspired both by the American-made
film and by cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad in a French satirical weekly.
France had already announced the closure on Friday of embassies and other
institutions in 20 countries while, in Paris, some Muslim leaders urged their
followers to heed a government ban on weekend demonstrations protesting against
denigration of the prophet.
The German Interior Ministry said it was postponing a poster campaign aimed at
countering radical Islam to avoid fueling protests among the country's four million
Muslims, The Associated Press reported.
In Pakistan, the scene of the most turbulent unrest, ARY News said that a driver,
Muhammad Amir, was shot three times by the police as he drove through an area where
stick-wielding protesters were burning a movie theater owned by a prominent
politician.
In Islamabad, where thousands of protesters flooded toward the heavily guarded
diplomatic enclave, Express News reported that the police ran out of rubber bullets
because of heavy firing.
A television reporter said that when protesters in nearby Rawalpindi ran out of
material to burn, they broke into several tire shops along a major road to steal
fresh supplies.
The government cut off cellphone coverage in major cities, while the authorities in
Islamabad sealed all exits to the city after Friday Prayer, state radio reported.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced it had summoned the American charge
d'affaires, Richard Hoagland, asking him to have the anti-Islam film removed from
YouTube, which has been entirely blocked in Pakistan for the past several days.
Peshawar as violent crowds filled the streets of several cities on a day of
government-sanctioned protests against an anti-Islam film made in the United
States.
The unrest came as governments and Western institutions in many parts of the Muslim
world braced for protests after Friday Prayer an occasion often associated with
demonstrations as worshipers leave mosques.
In Tunisia, the authorities invoked emergency powers to outlaw all demonstrations,
fearing an outpouring of anti-Western protest inspired both by the American-made
film and by cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad in a French satirical weekly.
France had already announced the closure on Friday of embassies and other
institutions in 20 countries while, in Paris, some Muslim leaders urged their
followers to heed a government ban on weekend demonstrations protesting against
denigration of the prophet.
The German Interior Ministry said it was postponing a poster campaign aimed at
countering radical Islam to avoid fueling protests among the country's four million
Muslims, The Associated Press reported.
In Pakistan, the scene of the most turbulent unrest, ARY News said that a driver,
Muhammad Amir, was shot three times by the police as he drove through an area where
stick-wielding protesters were burning a movie theater owned by a prominent
politician.
In Islamabad, where thousands of protesters flooded toward the heavily guarded
diplomatic enclave, Express News reported that the police ran out of rubber bullets
because of heavy firing.
A television reporter said that when protesters in nearby Rawalpindi ran out of
material to burn, they broke into several tire shops along a major road to steal
fresh supplies.
The government cut off cellphone coverage in major cities, while the authorities in
Islamabad sealed all exits to the city after Friday Prayer, state radio reported.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced it had summoned the American charge
d'affaires, Richard Hoagland, asking him to have the anti-Islam film removed from
YouTube, which has been entirely blocked in Pakistan for the past several days.
