Yemeni protesters storm US embassy

Protesters breached the usually tight security around the embassy and reached the compound grounds but did not enter the main building.

They burned the US flag and replaced it with a black banner bearing Islam's declaration of faith - "There is no god but God."

Demonstrators also removed the embassy's sign on the outer wall, set tyres ablaze and pelted the compound with rocks.

Yemeni security forces in Sanaa who rushed to the scene fired in the air and used tear gas to disperse the demonstrators.

The Yemeni embassy in Washington condemned the attack and vowed to step up security measures to ensure the safety of foreign diplomats.

The incident was similar to an attack on the US embassy in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Tuesday night. Protesters there clashed with police for the third day in a row yesterday.

A mob of Libyans also attacked the US consulate in Benghazi on Tuesday, killing US ambassador Chris Stevens and three other US staff.

The Pentagon ordered two warships to the Libyan coast and an elite group of marines to Tripoli in the aftermath of the attack.

President Barack Obama vowed that the US would "work with the Libyan government to bring to justice" to those who killed Mr Stevens, information manager Sean Smith and two other US citizens who were not identified.

The amateur film that provoked the protests, Innocence of Muslims, came to attention after its trailer was dubbed into Arabic and posted on YouTube.

The trailer depicted Mohammad as a fraud, a womaniser and a madman in an overtly ridiculing way, showing him having sex and calling for massacres.

foreigneditor@peoples-press.com