Protestors Rally in Tripoli and Sidon over Anti-Islam Film
Around 200 protestors took to the streets of the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on Thursday to express outrage over a U.S.-made film mocking Islam and the Prophet Mohammed.
Some protestors burned the U.S. flag while chanting "Allahu akbar!" (God is greatest), while others carried with them black flags that read: "There is no God but God, and Mohammed is his prophet."
Despite the relatively small number of demonstrators, security forces were heavily deployed in the city during the rally.
Scores of men and women also demonstrated on the outskirts of the southern port of Sidon to denounce the film.
"Freedom does not mean insults to religion," read one poster held up by protesters. "Who are you, you low lifes, to insult what is good for people," read another.
Protestors have demonstrated against the film in several countries.
There was a violent protest in Sanaa on Thursday, two days after four Americans, including the ambassador, were killed when a Libyan mob attacked the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, and protesters in Cairo tore down the Stars and Stripes and replaced it with a black Islamic flag.
The low-budget movie "Innocence of Muslims," in which actors have strong American accents, portrays Muslims as immoral and gratuitously violent.
It pokes fun at the Prophet Mohammed and touches on themes of pedophilia and homosexuality, while showing him sleeping with women, talking about killing children and referring to a donkey as "the first Muslim animal."
Mystery has deepened over the film, with conflicting accounts from backers and promoters but no one owning up to having actually directed it.
Source: Agence France Presse
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://naharnet.com/stories/en/53470 |