Afghanistan - Koran Burning Protests Break Out

 

Hundreds of Afghans have again taken to the streets to protests against the burning of the Koran by US soldiers. Fresh demonstrations are taking place in the eastern provinces of Nangarhar and Laghman in what is now the fifth consecutive day of unrest. More than 20 people have been killed since the protests began on Tuesday, including two US soldiers.

On Friday Nato's Afghanistan commander Gen John Allen appealed for calm while the incident was investigated.  US personnel apparently inadvertently put the books into a rubbish incinerator at Bagram air base, near Kabul. The governor's house in Laghman province reportedly came under attack on Saturday."The protesters turned violent and were throwing stones at the governor's palace," a protester told the AFP news agency.

Police were trying to control the crowd but were not shooting into the air to avoid , Police Chief Abdul Rahman Sarjang told the Associated Press. Friday was the deadliest day of unrest so far. At least 12 people were killed across the country as mobs charged at US bases and diplomatic missions. Eight of the deaths reported on Friday were in western Herat province, which had seen little unrest previously.

Earlier on Friday, Gen Allen called on "everyone throughout the country - Isaf [International Security Assistance Force] members and Afghans - to exercise patience and restraint as we continue to gather the facts". "Working together with the Afghan leadership is the only way for us to correct this major error and ensure that it never happens again," he said in a statement.

US President Barack Obama has also apologized for the Koran-burning incident. In a letter to his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai, Mr Obama said the books had been "unintentionally mishandled".
Muslims consider the Koran the literal word of God and treat each book with deep reverence. On Thursday the Taliban had called on Afghans to attack "invading forces" in revenge for "insulting" the Koran.

Last year, at least 24 people died in protests across Afghanistan after a hardline US pastor burned a Koran in Florida.