A violent mob torched at least seven churches in Niger's capital Niamey on Saturday during fresh protests against Charlie Hebdo magazine. Anger mounted in several Muslim countries over the satirical magazine's depiction of the Prophet Muhammad, with a second day of rioting erupting in Niger. Around 1,000 youth wielding iron bars, clubs and axes rampaged through the city, hurling rocks at police, who responded with tear gas.
The French embassy in Niamey urged its citizens to stay at home, the day after a rally against Charlie Hebdo in the country's second city of Zinder left four dead and 45 injured. "Be very cautious, avoid going out," the embassy said on its website as rioters also ransacked several French-linked businesses, including telephone kiosks run by Orange.
Thousands of Muslims demonstrated across the world on Friday, venting fury over the new Prophet Muhammad cartoon — considered as un-Islamic by Muslims — that Charlie Hebdo published in the wake of Islamist attacks on its offices and elsewhere in Paris last week. Many Muslims see any such depiction as offensive, while many Western governments support Charlie Hebdo’s position.