Africa

US orders evacuation of some staff from Sudan, Tunisia embassies

The US State Department has ordered the evacuation of some staff members from the country’s embassies in Khartoum and Tunis amid growing anger across the Muslim world over a US-made anti-Islam movie.

On Sunday, the State Department ordered the non-essential staff and family members to leave Sudan and Tunisia, AFP reported.

The Tunisian Health Ministry said on Saturday that four people had lost their lives and nearly 50 others sustained injuries during clashes between the police and demonstrators at the US embassy in Tunis during protest against the blasphemous movie.

Sudanese demonstrators on Friday stormed the US embassy in protest at the movie — made by an Israeli-American in the United States and named Innocence of Muslims — which insults Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

On September 11, US Ambassador to Tripoli, Christopher Stevens and three staff members were killed in an attack on the building of the US consulate in the city of Benghazi in northeastern Libya.

Related protest rallies have been held in more than 30 countries across the world, including Australia, Belgium, France, Israel, Indonesia, and the Maldives.

So far, almost a dozen protesters have died in the wave of violence over the movie, produced on a budget of USD 5 million.

US officials have deployed marine units to Libya and Yemen, and stationed two destroyers off the North African coast. The Yemeni parliament has disapproved of the US military presence, while Sana’a has agreed to the deployment.

Also on Saturday, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed El-Tayeb issued a statement, addressed to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in which he emphasized “the need for an international resolution [banning] any attack on Muslim religious symbols.”

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