Saddam Hussein’s death sentence was celebrated by some as justice deserved or even divine, but denounced by others as a political ploy before critical US mid-term congressional elections.

Thousands of angry tribesmen and Islamists protested today across Pakistan against an airstrike that killed 80 people at a religious school near the Afghan border this week, as state TV aired video footage purportedly showing militants in training there before the attack.

About 50,000 people, many chanting “Hang those who insulted the prophet”, rallied in a southern Pakistani city to protest at cartoon drawings of the prophet Muhammad.

Police detained former Pakistan cricket captain Imran Khan, the leader of a small opposition party, at his Islamabad home ahead of a planned protest today against the US president’s visit.

Security was tightened across Pakistan today during a strike called by radical Islamic groups to protest against the Prophet Mohammed drawings, with most shops and businesses closed in several cities.

A coalition of radical Islamic parties called for nationwide protests in Pakistan today after police arrested hundreds of religious activists to thwart a weekend rally against Prophet Mohammed cartoons in the eastern city of Lahore.

Police today arrested about 70 people, including clerics and religious school administrators, in the eastern city of Lahore in a bid to prevent an illegal rally against Prophet Muhammad cartoons from going ahead, police said.

Thousands of Islamists today defied a ban on rallies in Pakistan’s capital, joining protesters across the country in condemning the Prophet Mohammed cartoons printed by some Western newspapers.

PAKISTANI security forces arrested hundreds of Islamic hard-liners and virtually sealed off the capital Islamabad yesterday before using gunfire and tear gas to disperse a protest that had been banned by the government after a wave of deadly riots.

Pakistani security forces arrested hundreds of Islamic hard-liners and virtually sealed off the capital Islamabad today, before using gunfire and tear gas to disperse a Prophet Mohammed cartoon protest that had been banned by the government after a wave of deadly riots.

Hundreds of Muslims protesting caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad attacked the US Embassy in Indonesia with rocks and sticks today as police detained lawmakers in Pakistan and fired tear gas to quell demonstrations there.

PAKISTANI security forces yesterday stopped hundreds of hardline Islamists from heading to north-western Pakistan to protest against a fatal US missile attack, the first time authorities have tried to quell mounting anti-American sentiments.

Outrage at the US has continued in Pakistan, with thousands taking to the streets chanting “Death to America” and calling for holy war over an airstrike that devastated a remote border village.

A coalition of radical Muslim groups will stage nationwide demonstrations in Pakistan to protest an ongoing crackdown on Islamic schools, mosques and offices that has netted more than 200 suspects, a senior cleric said today.

A senior leader from a coalition of radical Islamic political parties today said the attacks in London might have been orchestrated by the West as a strategy to turn public opinion against Muslims, a claim sure to produce outrage around the globe.

THOUSANDS of Muslims marched yesterday in countries from Asia to the Middle East, burning symbols of America to protest against the alleged desecration of the Koran by military personnel at the US prison in Guantanamo Bay.

Four people were shot to death today in clashes with police as protests over allegations that interrogators in Guantanamo Bay desecrated Islam’s holy book spread to more Afghan cities, officials and witnesses said.

Four people were shot dead in clashes with police as anti-US protests spread to more Afghan cities today, officials and witnesses said.

Political allies welcomed the inauguration of President George Bush to a second term today, while critics expressed hope that he would use it as a turning point by acknowledging mistakes in Iraq and mending damage done by the war.

Seven suspects, including the father of Pakistan’s nuclear programme, remain under investigation for allegedly selling nuclear secrets to Iran and Libya, and a decision on whether to put them on trial will only be made when the probe is complete, an official said.