KABUL, 15 May 2005 — Afghan President Hamid Karzai urged the United States yesterday to prosecute and punish anyone found guilty of desecrating the Qur’an as anti-US protests continued for a fifth day.
Sixteen Afghans have been killed and more than 100 hurt since Wednesday in the worst anti-US protests across Afghanistan since US forces invaded in 2001 to oust the Taleban for harboring Osama Bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda network.
Newsweek magazine said in its May 9 edition investigators probing abuses at the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay found that interrogators had desecrated the Qur’an to rattle Muslim prisoners.
“If proven that this happened, then we will strongly ask the American government to put on trial and punish whoever is the culprit,” Karzai told a news conference. “Such sacrilege is unacceptable to every Muslim.”
Afghan Chief Justice Fazl Hadi Shinwari backed up Karzai’s demand. “If the Americans have done this, then they should admit it and punish those who did it and apologize to Muslims,” Shinwari said.
The United States has tried to calm global Muslim outrage over the incident, saying disrespect for the Qur’an was abhorrent and would not be tolerated, and military authorities were investigating the allegation.
International Muslim groups in Saudi Arabia also called on the United States to investigate and punish those responsible.
The 57-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference said the report had enraged hundreds of millions of Muslims and would “provide fanatics and extremists with excuses to... justify their acts of violence and terrorism.”
The World Muslim League, based in the holy city of Makkah, called for a speedy investigation and said perpetrators should be held accountable.
The anti-US protesters in Afghanistan have also been venting their anger against Karzai, attacking and torching government offices and police stations as well as UN and aid group offices.
Protests erupted in several parts of the country again yesterday but apart from some stone-throwing, there was no violence, officials said. They said there were protests in the southern town of Spin Boldak, on the border with Pakistan, in neighboring Zabul province, in Farah province in the west and in Badghis in the northwest.
School students threw stones at an aid agency office in Badghis province but no one was hurt, residents said.
The protests began in the conservative eastern city of Jalalabad on Tuesday. Violence erupted on Wednesday when four protesters were killed. Clashes occurred in different places on Thursday and Friday.
US and other foreign troops have not been involved in policing the protests.
Karzai also said he would ask US forces to hand over all Afghan prisoners.
