Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah made a surprise appearance
at the protest he called for in Beirut’s Southern Suburbs to denounce
the anti-Islam film “Innocence of Muslims”, produced in the United States.
Nasrallah thanked all those who responded to his call, saying
that some do not realize how offensive the film is.
Nasrallah called for banning the film and punishing those
behind it. “The US must understand that releasing the entire film would have
very dangerous repercussions”.
Hezbollah chief reiterated his call for the international
community to issue resolutions and national laws to criminalize offenses against the 3 major religions, stressing the importance of coexistence and directing anger
towards the “real enemy”
Following Nasrallah's calls, thousands of Lebanese protesters
chanting "Death to America, Death to Israel" are protesting in Beirut's
Shi'ite Southern Suburbs to denounce a film made in the United
States which mocks the Prophet Mohammad. "All these developments are being orchestrated by U.S.
intelligence", Nasrallah said on Sunday.
The Amal party also
called on its partisans to join in the demonstration.
"America, hear us - don't insult our
Prophet," chanted the marchers at the demonstration.
The peaceful protest, which came after a
weekend of violent demonstrations across Arab capitals in which several U.S.
embassies were attacked, stayed well away from U.S. missions on the city's
northeastern outskirts.
It followed a three-day visit to Lebanon by
Pope Benedict who used his trip to call for reconciliation between Muslims and
Christians.
For his part, Interior Minister
Marwan Charbel said that the ministry has been notified of the protests, adding
that they will be limited and timed.
“Measures have been taken to ensure
the safety of American missions here in Lebanon, since Lebanese people also
benefit from these institutions,” he confirmed.
Similarly, violent protests erupted
Monday morning in the Afghan capital Kabul as protesters burnt cars and chanted
anti-American slogans.
The
film has incited over the past week the worst wave of anti-American sentiment
across the Muslim world.
In
Libya an attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi killed Ambassador Christopher
Stevens and three other Americans last Tuesday.
On Friday, one person was killed in
Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli in protests against the film which depicts
the prophet as a womanizer and homosexual.
For the full report, watch the video above.
REUTERS/LBCI