GagWatch

Over the weekend, I linked to ‘Aqoul’s suggestion that, for the riots and embassy bunings in Damascas to have gone ahead, the Syrian authorities must have, at least turned a blind eye if not actually encouraged the protestors.

Today, The Independent confirms it.

Syrian protesters who burnt and looted the Danish and Norwegian embassies in Damascus at the weekend were encouraged to organise by the Syrian authorities, and received text messages from Islamic study centres urging them to gather, according to participants in the riot.

“The sheikhs told us to send five text messages to every true Muslim we knew urging them to participate,” said a student from the conservative Abu Nour Islamic Institute in Damascus, who wished to remain anonymous. “The authorities gave a green light for us to organise the gathering in public and to participate in it.”

The report goes on to suggest that the anger - which was whipped up by a group of Danish Muslim Leaders and Imams back in January - has been exploited by some Muslim countries to settle scores with Western powers.

Syria and Iran face growing pressure from the US and Europe on the issues of Iraq and on Tehran’s nuclear programme. And Egypt, one of the first to publicly criticise the cartoons, has been critical of the Danish government for funding critics of human rights abuses.

“This is an organised attempt to take advantage of Muslim anger for purposes that do not serve the interests of Muslims and Lebanon, but those of others beyond the border,” Lebanese Social Affairs Minister Nayla Mouawad, a Christian, said yesterday after riots in Beirut.

Elsewhere, Iraq’s Transport Ministry has frozen contracts with Denmark and Norway.

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