NIAMEY: Security forces in Niger used tear gas Sunday to disperse hundreds of opposition supporters taking part in a banned demonstration in the capital.

The political altercation came after 10 people were killed in two days of violent protests against a French publication’s cartoon depicting anti-Islam caricatures.

Niger authorities banned Sunday’s demonstration by the political opposition because of the tense situation following the violence in response to the French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo’s offending cartoons.

President Mahamadou Issoufou said late Saturday that five people were killed in the capital, Niamey, when churches and bars were set ablaze. On Friday, at least five other people were killed in the town of Zinder when protests erupted after Muslim prayer services there.

The violence came after the French magazine published a new cartoon offending Muslims’ sensibilities. The issue, published on Wednesday, was the first following a Jan. 7 terrorist attack on its headquarters that left 12 dead.

Physical depictions of the Prophet are considered blasphemous, and protests have occurred in a number of predominantly Muslim countries this week.

Sunday’s anti-government demonstration in Niger was organized prior to the Charlie Hebdo protests, though officials said Saturday it would not be allowed to go ahead. Opposition organizers cited general grievances with the government including the controversial purchase of a presidential plane last year.

Police earlier fired tear gas Sunday to break up a banned opposition demonstration in the capital Niamey.

Around 300 demonstrators gathered in central Niamey for a long-planned march on parliament, defying a ban on demonstrations announced on Saturday.

The protesters responded to the tear gas by throwing stones at the police and burning tires but later dispersed peacefully, an AFP correspondent reported.

Seven protesters were arrested, a police source said.

The opposition alliance behind the rally had said Saturday it would press ahead with the march against “the crushing of opposition parties” and “bad governance,” despite the west African country being on a knife edge after two days of rioting.

On Saturday, five people were killed in Niamey after protesters demonstrating over the cover of the magazine’s Jan. 14 “survivors issue” went on the rampage, setting fire to at least eight churches.

Bars, hotels and various businesses owned by non-Muslims or with connections to France were also targeted.

On Friday, five people were killed and 45 injured in similar protests in Niger’s second city of Zinder.

President Mahamadou Issoufou appealed for calm on Saturday, saying “those who loot these places of worship, who desecrate them and kill their compatriots... have understood nothing of Islam.”

Former colonial power France, which has defended Charlie Hebdo’s freedom of expression, also condemned the violence.

The riots had abated by Saturday evening, with police deployed to protect the main cathedral in Niamey and other religious sites.