Thank you, Newsweek ..the consequences of irresponsible MSM "journalism"

Newsweek sparks global riots with one paragraph on Koran By Catherine Philp Claim that the Holy book was defiled by US guards at Guantanamo Bay has incensed Muslims

Demonstrators show the depth of anti-American feeling in Islamabad after the Newsweek report (REUTERS) AT LEAST nine people were killed yesterday as a wave of anti-American demonstrations swept the Islamic world from the Gaza Strip to the Java Sea, sparked by a single paragraph in a magazine alleging that US military interrogators had desecrated the Koran. As Washington scrambled to calm the outrage, Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State, promised an inquiry and punishment for any proven offenders. But at Friday prayers in the Muslim world many preachers demanded vengeance and afterwards thousands took to the streets, burning American flags. Although the original report in Newsweek was small, it was re-broadcast by television networks such as al-Jazeera and al-Arabiya and in Pakistan it was quoted by Imran Khan, the cricketer-turned-politician, at a press conference. He said it would strengthen the impression that America’s War on Terror was against Muslims. The most violent protests were in Afghanistan, where the death toll in clashes between demonstrators and security forces reached fourteen after a third day of rioting. Three people were killed and twenty-two injured near Faizabad, in Badakhshan province, when a thousand rioters burnt down aid agencies’ offices. Worshippers in Pakistan poured on to the streets after prayers, chanting “Death to America”, and burning American flags. In Jakarta, hundreds gathered noisily at a mosque. Thousands marched through the streets of a Palestinian refugee camp in Gaza. The unrest began this week after Newsweek published an allegation that American military interrogators had desecrated the Islamic holy book in an effort to rattle detainees at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. The report said that they had placed the Koran on the lavatory inside inmates’ cells and had “in at least one case, flushed a holy book down the toilet” .

Thing about it is, there is NO EVIDENCE that such an event ever took place. So, in Newsweek's zeal to put an anti-American slant on things, albeit without confirmation, people died. Hope you're happy, Newsweek. Hat tip to Little Green Footballs.

*****UPDATE*****

From Fox TV News: Newsweek has just come out with a statement to the effect that it regrets any errors that it may have made, and that they send their sympathies to the families of those who were injured or who were killed. As of this writing there is no such statement on their web site, nor on the Fox News web site. As soon as the actual text of the retraction is available, I will post it here.

For now, suffice it to say that 15 people have died, and scores more have been injured. I would say that some journalistic heads should roll after this one.

*****UPDATE*****