By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
TRIPOLI, Libya – Very little is known about the film, The Innocence of Muslims, or its maker, Sam Bacile. One thing we do know is that the anti-Muhammad film has led to Muslim protests and violence directed at American embassies in Egypt, Iraq, Libya, and Yemen.
The film was supposedly shown at one largely vacant theatre before a thirteen-minute clip found itself posted on YouTube for the world to see. For most Muslims, any depiction of Mohammed is met with scorn, but The Innocence of Muslims’ depiction of Mohammaed as a religious fraud, womanizer, child molester, and ruthless killer has particularly incensed Muslims. The actors involved in making the video claim to have been “grossly misled” about the purpose of the film. The crew believed they were making an Arabian Desert adventure film titled “Desert Warrior.” They maintain that all of their lines were dubbed over in post-production with the anti-Mohammed content.
Bacile has since gone into hiding following the fury he evoked in the Arab world. No one in the Hollywood film community has ever heard of him or his film, which casts serious aspersions as to whether The Innocence of Muslims is actually a full-length movie or just a thirteen-minute clip. After partaking in a single interview, the Associated Press described Bacile as “a California real estate developer who identifies himself as an Israeli Jew.” Neither the California Association of Realtors nor the Israeli consulate in Los Angeles claim to have ever heard of Sam Bacile. The Israeli consulate claims that he is part of the Egyptian Coptic diaspora, but a cleric with the Coptic Orthodox Church diocese of Los Angeles denies having ever heard of him. Regardless, Bacile is connected to Morris Sadik, an Egyptian Coptic Christian in California who played the clip for his group, the National American Coptic Assembly.
Public reaction against the film in the Middle East began on Tuesday and continue to spark demonstrations at the U.S. embassies in Yemen, Egypt, and Iraq. In Yemen, hundreds of angered Muslims have congregated at the U.S. Embassy in Sana’a, burning U.S. Flags and chanting “death to America” as they attempted to storm the building.
“We want to close the American embassy for this insult on prophet Mohammed,” said Abdullah Rahman Safi, echoing the protesters’ sentiments.
Yemeni troops eventually suppressed the uprising by firing tear gas and live ammunition into the air. Both Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and the Yemeni Embassy in Washington have apologized to America for the attacks and have sworn to investigate the attacks on the embassy and keep U.S. foreign diplomats safe.
Similar demonstrations, involving the throwing of rocks, are taking place near the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, Egypt. The initial protests occurred at the embassy, but police have since been able to keep protesters away from the building through the use of tear gas. So far, sixteen protesters and thirteen policemen have been wounded in the clashes. Additionally, twelve dissidents have been arrested. Egypt’s first Islamist president, Mohamed Morsi, has pledged to not allow attacks on foreign embassies, but expressed some conflict with suppressing his people’s freedom of expression.
Hundreds of Shi’ites in Iraq also congregated outside the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad calling for the termination of the embassy in response to the film. They too burned American flags and chanted “No, no, to Israel! No, no to America! Yes, yes for Messenger of God.”
The most violent protest took place at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, on Tuesday night. There, demonstrating protesters were accompanied by heavily armed militants who shot gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades at the U.S. Consulate for four straight hours. Shortly after the firing began, the gunmen gained access to the building and were able to set it on fire. Many were injured and at least four people were killed, including Christopher Stephens, the U.S. Ambassador to Libya. He initially started working as an English teacher in Morocco, where he said he quickly realized that he “grew to love this part of the world.”
Suzanne Nossel, Executive Director of Amnesty International USA, said that, “However offensive this film may be it can in no way excuse such killings and violent attacks.”
While many of the Muslim protesters are upset about the movie, not everyone is convinced that the true motivation of the violence is the response to the film. U.S. officials are currently investigating the question of whether the killings in Libya were planned to coincide with the anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Al-Qaeda’s most active branch is located in Yemen. Prior to Tuesday night’s attacks on the U.S. Embassy, the country’s government announced that al-Qaeda’s “number two man” had been killed in a U.S. airstrike.
For further information, please see:
Huffington Post — U.S. Embassy Attacks: “Death to America” Chants and Flag-Burning Protests Spread to Iran, Iraq — 13 September 2012
USA Today – Protesters Storm U.S. Embassy in Yemen – 13 September 2012
Amnesty International – Libya: No Excuse for Attack on US Consulate – 12 September 2012
Guardian – Mystery Surrounds ‘Sam Bacile’, Maker of Controversial Anti-Muhammad Film – 12 September 2012
CNN – Six Things to Know About Attack That Killed Ambassador Stevens – 12 September 2012
