Protest against Quran burning in Kabul turns violent

A demonstration in Kabul against Florida pastor Terry Jones’s since-abandoned plans to burn the Quran last Saturday turned violent on Wednesday morning. The demonstration left at least 37 police officers and eight Afghans wounded. Analysts say the incident points to how seriously Muslims have reacted to the Quran burning stunt in the US, and how tense relations between Afghanistan and the U.S. are ahead of Saturday’s parliamentary election. It is believed that the Taliban stoked the anger to incite anti-American sentiment. “Some Taliban infiltrated the protest and that’s why it became violent,” said Mohamed Zahir, chief of the Kabul police criminal investigations division. “They were firing on police from neighbouring houses.”