Protests Over Video Mocking Islam Spread Further

Protests sparked by a video said to mock Islam are continuing to spread around the Muslim world.

Western embassies have been targeted and in some cases attacked in several countries, from Tunisia and Sudan to Bangladesh and Indonesia.

Anchor Marco Werman speaks with Washington Post correspondent Michael Birnbaum in Cairo, where anti-American protests were held for a fourth day in a row.

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Marco Werman: I’m Marco Werman, this is The World. Anti-American protests spread further around the globe today from Tunisia and Sudan to Bangladesh and Indonesia. Muslims vented their anger at the now infamous film that offends their faith. In Egypt it was a fourth straight day of riots over the movie. Earlier today we spoke with Washington Post correspondent Michael Birnbaum in Cairo. He was keeping tabs on events across the region.

Michael Birnbaum: In Khartoum, in Sudan, there are about 5,000 protestors who have stormed both the German and British embassies, apparently they’re at the American embassy right now. In Tunis there are protestors around the US embassy there. Gaza City, Jerusalem, several cities in Iraq, in Lebanon, in Tripoli, a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant was burned down.

Werman: That’s Tripoli, Lebanon, yeah.

Birnbaum: Tripoli, Lebanon, yes. In Sanaa, in Yemen, there were also fairly large protests a day after. Yesterday when protestors stormed the US embassy there and looted some of the buildings, there the security forces were using live fire, this time shooting into the air, not at protestors, but a stringer that we have there said that two of the soldiers told him they had been ordered to use live fire against the protestors if they came too close to the embassy.

Werman: Now today in Cairo where you are, Michael, 5,000 people turned out at Tahrir Square, but earlier today the Muslim Brotherhood announced the cancellation of national demonstrations where it had been of a million man march. Why did the Muslim Brotherhood do that and did it make any difference?

Birnbaum: Well, the Muslim Brotherhood and President Morsi, who is a member, are clearly trying to figure out the right balance between appealing to their quite conservative, their conservative Islamic base and the pressures of newly being world leaders. You even see it in differences between their English language presence and their Arabic language presence. The Arabic language Twitter feed, for example, has been quite a bit more antiAmerican, more anti-film than their English language Twitter feed which has been fairly conciliatory and apologetic for the attacks on the embassy here in Cairo.

Werman: How have the security forces in Cairo reacted to those who have gathered at Tahrir Square?

Birnbaum: I don’t know, but there has been tear gas. Overnight they, security forces constructed very large concrete walls that sealed off some of the streets around the embassy to keep protestors in Tahrir Square farther away from the embassy compound. But on Tuesday when all of this started a lot of people near the embassy really were quite surprised at how minimal the security presence was and that again, was when protestors wound up scaling the wall to the embassy and pulling down an American flag and destroying it. That really I think upset a lot of American diplomats and frankly, a lot of Egyptians.

Werman: You know, President Morsi continues to plead for calm. It really does seem like things in Egypt were in kind of a tinderbox state just waiting for one thing to happen, and then video lead to it. Am I wrong in that?

Birnbaum: Well, I think that’s true, that’s something that is always true. In Egypt there is a tremendous reservoir of anti American feeling here that a single fringe film could set off this much controversy and violence, both here in Cairo and in the region, clearly shows the degree to which people are suspicious, and fearful and unhappy with the United States.

Werman: Michael Birnbaum of the Washington Post, speaking to us from Cairo, thank you very much.

Birnbaum: Thanks a lot.

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