In the wake of anti-American demonstrations over the incendiary film "Innocence of Muslims," protesters in Tripoli, Lebanon, have taken to attacking not an American consulate, but American fast-food restaurants, according to Reuters. Rioters were seen burning Hardee's and Kentucky Fried Chicken eateries in the northern Lebanon city.
Many demonstrators were also enraged about Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Lebanon, shouting, "We don't want the pope" and "No more insults (to Islam)."
The film "Innocence of Muslims" was filmed in California as an inflammatory piece of anti-Islamic propaganda by Egyptian Nakoula Basseley Nakoula under the pseudonym "Sam Bacile," according to the Associated Press. "Federal court papers filed against Nakoula in a 2010 criminal prosecution noted that Nakoula had used numerous aliases, including Nicola Bacily and Robert Bacily," AP reported.
Nakoula allegedly hired a cast and crew under the pretense they were making a film called "Desert Warriors" about the life of an ancient Egyptian.
In post-processing, Nakoula overdubbed lines in the film to make specific derogatory comments about Islam and the Prophet Muhammad, referring to him as a "child molester," according to media reports. Nakoula, in the guise of "Sam Bacile," reportedly referred to Islam as a "cancer" while attempting to drum up publicity for the self-produced film.
After Middle Eastern audiences became aware of the film's existence, "Innocence of Muslims" sparked outrage across the Muslim world, leading to anti-American protests over the film's content. U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens was killed in one recent attack.
American officials such as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton have roundly criticized both the film and the violence it incited, as the protesting continues.
