British troops sent to riot-hit Afghan city

British troops have been sent to a town in Afghanistan where riots are continuing over the publication of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.

The troops were sent to an airfield in the northwestern town of Meymaneh, after a mob tried to storm a NATO peacekeeping base.

According to reports, three protestors were shot dead and as many as 30 were wounded. The circumstances of the deaths are unclear.

The base, which houses Norwegian troops, is believed to have been attacked by a crowd of around 300 people, who threw stones at the base.

Protests over the publication of the cartoons, which were first published in a Danish newspaper last September and reprinted in several European newspapers last week, continued around the world today.

Around 5,000 people gathered in Peshawar in Pakistan to protest over the cartoons. Protests have also taken place in the Afghan capital, Kabul, prompting a tightening of security. On Monday, protestors attempted to break into the US military base in Bagram. It was reported that five protestors were killed.

A 14-year-old boy was also reported to have been killed during protests in Somalia.

Violent protests have also taken place in both Sumatra and Jakarta in Indonesia. Danish citizens have been ordered to leave Indonesia following the protests.

It was also announced yesterday that Iranian newspaper Hamshahri would hold a competition to publish the best images mocking the Holocaust.

In Britain, a Welsh student newspaper was forced to recall all of its copies after it published one of the cartoons of Muhammad, becoming the first UK publication to do so.

All eight thousand copies of Gair Rhydd, the newspaper of Cardiff University, were recalled and an apology has been issued.

It is understood that the paper's editor, along with three other journalists, have been suspended.

(KMcA)