'Anti-Islam' film: Protesters storm diplomatic enclave in Islamabad

Tags: 'Anti-Islam' film, Islamabad, storm
ISLAMABAD: Angry over an anti-Islam film, thousands of Pakistani protesters, including many armed with wooden clubs, Thursday tried to breach the sensitive diplomatic enclave in the heart of Islamabad and clashed with riot police, forcing authorities to call in the army. Members of student groups, including the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba, began gathering outside the Red Zone, which includes the US embassy and missions of other countries as well as sensitive government buildings, at around 2 pm in large numbers to protest against the anti-Islam film 'Innocence of Muslims'. The crowds swelled about two hours later as thousands of members of hardline religious groups, including Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat and Jamaat-ud-Dawah, came to Islamabad from Rawalpindi in a rally. The protesters fought running battles with riot police for almost three hours. They lobbed stones at police, who used tear gas, rubber bullets and batons while trying to disperse them. At least nine policemen and six students were injured. After police failed to bring the situation under control, the Interior Ministry called in the army to quell the protest. The protesters burnt at least two police posts. They gathered in large numbers near the five-star Serena Hotel, located a short distance from the diplomatic enclave. Though authorities had blocked some roads with empty containers, scores of protesters made their way past the barriers. Footage on TV showed several injured policemen, their uniforms stained with blood, being taken away to safety by their colleagues. At one point, the policemen ran out of tear gas shells and had to seek further supplies, TV channels said. The protesters were seen coming to the Red Zone in Islamabad in dozens of cars and motorcycles. Many of them were armed with the sticks. Pakistan government has decided to observe the 'Love the Prophet Day' on Friday and declared it a national holiday, condemning the anti-Islam film that has sparked protests across the Muslim world. So far, two persons have died in violent protests against the film in the southern port city of Karachi and the Dir region in the country's restive northwest. Dozens more have been injured in the protests, mostly organised by religious and hardline groups.
36 injured in anti-Islam film protest in Islamabad 12 Islamabad, Sep 20 (IANS) At least 36 people, including policemen, suffered injuries near the diplomatic enclave in Islamabad Thursday and the army had to be called in to contain a massive protest being staged against a controversial anti-Islam US film. The demonstrators clashed with the police as they tried to enter the red zone and diplomatic enclave in Islamabad. Protesters burnt police and Rangers check posts, damaged several vehicles and public property, while the police used tear gas shelling to control the situation. As the shelling proved ineffective, the army was summoned. According to Geo News, the Pakistani Army was summoned to protect the red zone and diplomatic enclave in Islamabad from demonstrators. Islamabad's diplomatic enclave is home to most Western embassies, including the US, British and French missions. Clashes broke out when thousands of university and college students from the neighbouring Rawalpindi city tried to force into the diplomatic enclave in Islamabad to register their protest at the US embassy over US film 'Innocence of Muslims', reported Samma TV. Hundreds of heavily armed policemen tried to disperse the protesting mobs with tear smoke but protesting students retaliated with stone-pelting at the police, smashing police vehicles and torching police checkposts. At least two police checkposts were torched and an unknown number of police vehicles were damaged in the clashes. When students could not enter the diplomatic enclave, some of them started turning to other places near the diplomatic enclave. Large number of protestors were seen near parliament and a five-star hotel frequented by Westerners, Xinhua reported. As protests went on, many other people, including traders and religious people joined in. The number of the protestors soon swelled to over 10,000, media reports said. The 14-minute trailer of 'Innocence of Muslims' was originally posted on YouTube last June. It attracted little attention until Sep 8, this year when portions of the trailer were broadcast by a television network in Egypt. Mass demonstrations over the film broke out in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Sudan and other predominantly Muslim countries. US ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens was killed, along with three colleagues, when rioters attacked the US consulate in Benghazi.