Protests Erupt Across Islamic World Over Video

 Protests Erupt Across Islamic World Over Video

Fresh protests erupted Friday across the Islamic world, sparked by an Internet video produced in the United States that mocks the Prophet Muhammad.

Thousands of people took to the streets in Pakistan, where at least 17 people were killed and dozens wounded in clashes between security forces and protesters.  The deadliest violence was in the southern city of Karachi, where at least 12 people were killed.

Demonstrations¹ were also held in the capital, Islamabad, in Peshawar and Lahore, among other areas.

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry² says it summoned U.S. diplomat³ Richard Hoagland to register a "strong protest" over the video.  Hoagland reiterated⁴ U.S. condemnation⁵ of the film and emphasized the U.S. government had nothing to do with it.

The U.S. embassy in Pakistan ran advertisements on Pakistani TV that featured U.S. President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denouncing the video.

Pakistan's government designated Friday to be a national holiday and "a day of love for the Prophet Muhammad."

Thousands of Muslims also protested in other countries, including Afghanistan, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Iraq, Lebanon and Indonesia.  Some protesters burned American flags and effigies⁶ of Mr. Obama.

U.S. embassies across the Islamic world remain on high alert for protests.

In France, the government said it is closing its embassies, consulates⁷, cultural centers and schools in 20 countries Friday as a precautionary measure.  French authorities also banned two anti-U.S. protests planned for Saturday.

The French weekly Charlie Hebdo featured several images of the Prophet Muhammad in its Wednesday issue, including several of him naked.

Pakistani media said the government called on the army to protect Islamabad's diplomatic enclave.

Cell phone service was blocked in 15 Pakistani cities, including Islamabad and the eastern city of Lahore.

The low-budget Internet video was produced by an anti-Muslim filmmaker in California.  It first sparked protests last week in Cairo and the Libyan city of Benghazi, where U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other embassy personnel were killed.  Since then, anti-U.S. protests have spread as far as Indonesia.

Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf told a conference of religious leaders and politicians in Islamabad that Pakistan is demanding the United Nations and other international organizations seek a law that bans "such hate speech, equal to the worst kind of anti-Semitism or other kinds of bigotry⁸."

1 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

2 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

3 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

4 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

5 condemnation   

n.谴责; 定罪

参考例句：

• There was widespread condemnation of the invasion. 那次侵略遭到了人们普遍的谴责。
• The jury's condemnation was a shock to the suspect. 陪审团宣告有罪使嫌疑犯大为震惊。

6 effigies   

n.（人的）雕像，模拟像，肖像( effigy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• stone effigies in the church 教堂里的石雕像
• On 5 November British children burn effigies of Guy Fawkes. 每逢11月5日英国儿童都焚烧盖伊．福克斯的模拟像。 来自辞典例句

7 consulates   

n.领事馆( consulate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Consulates General of The People's Republic at Los Angeles. 中华人民共和国驻洛杉矶总领事馆。 来自互联网
• The country's embassies, consulates and other diplomatic missions stationed in other countries. （七）家驻外使馆、馆和其他外交代表机构。 来自互联网

8 bigotry   

n.偏见，偏执，持偏见的行为[态度]等

参考例句：

• She tried to dissociate herself from the bigotry in her past.她力图使自己摆脱她以前的偏见。
• At least we can proceed in this matter without bigotry.目前这件事咱们至少可以毫无偏见地进行下去。