/ 27 August 2001

170 HELD AFTER MUSLIM DEMO IN TANZANIA

MORE than 170 Tanzanian Muslims were being held in police cells on Saturday after being arrested on Friday while protesting the jailing of a preacher convicted of disparaging Christianity, police said. Dar es Salaam Regional Police Commander Alfred Tibaigana said that 145 men and 26 women were taken into custody during the demonstration. He added that 40 people, including five policemen, were injured when police, armed with tear gas, batons and water cannons, clashed with the protestors. Islamic groups had called for countrywide demonstrations to protest the conviction and 18-month jail term handed down on July 31 to Khamis Rajab Dibagula for inflaming religious sensibilities by uttering remarks alleged to be insulting to Christianity. – AFP