Riots, destruction, condemnation:

BEIRUT, Lebanon (CNS) — Catholic and Muslim religious leaders condemned the riot that erupted in Beirut when an estimated 30,000 Muslims protested against the publication of satirical cartoons of the prophet Mohammed in European newspapers.

The Danish Consulate was set ablaze, a Maronite Catholic church and the headquarters of the Greek Orthodox archbishop were vandalized, and numerous roadside shrines were smashed in the Feb. 5 violence. Many of the protesters wielded pipes and various weapons; many wore headbands and waved flags imprinted with the slogan "Prophet’s soldiers."

Archbishop Paul Youssef Matar of Beirut told Catholic News Service he believed the motivation behind the violence was political. Religious and political leaders in Lebanon denounced the violence, attributing it to outside interference to instigate chaos in the country. Many Lebanese believe that Syria, which ended its 30-year occupation of Lebanon in April, was behind the incident, and the archbishop speculated that many of those involved in the disruption were paid to participate and were incited to be violent.