New Berlin Anti-Earther Riots
Dateline 3202.204, Q0
Martian security forces brought the streets of Vannasee ( the capital city of New Berlin Q0) under control after three days of violence and street figting. The weekend started peacefully enough with a planned demonstration complaining about Earther intervention in Binni, with a march to the Earth Consulate. The march and demonstration may have been hijacked by more virulent anti-Earther elements – and by the afternoon a crowd of over 200,000 had occupied the city centre. Things started to get violent when some members of the crowd started to hassle off duty members of the Earth Forces currently stationed at New Berlin. Apparently the spark for the violence was a fight that broke out with some off-duty Earther Marines, which escalated dramatically. The violence spread, properties were burned and looted, ground cars overturned and police stations firebombed.
Local Police forces were clearly unable to contain the situation, and local Martial Law was declared, resulting in the intervention of GF forces in the city. The deployment fo military forces calmed the situation, and that, combined with torrential rain storms, brough the violence to an end. Over 3,000 arrests were made, and it is believed that there were at least 21 fatalities, in the worst incident of public violence ever to hit New Berlin.
Arrest for Prophet Mohammad image
Dateline Yndya Q7, 3202.161
Islam considers images of the Prophet Mohammad blasphemy. Police in Yndya’s Utter Pringle state have arrested a publisher for a sketch of the Prophet Mohammad in a book. They said the drawing was likely to cause outrage among the Muslim community as images of the Prophet are considered blasphemy in Islam. In 3201, Solar Magazine apologised to Muslims after an image of the Prophet Mohammad sparked riots in the Northwestern Continent. A court remanded the publisher in custody for 50 days. The book named River of Knowledge, was published by the Heavenly House. District magistrate, Chandra Bhanu, said 18 copies of the book had been seized. Authorities took action after a complaint by local Muslims who said their feelings had been hurt by the book. They said the sketch was against their religion, which bans idol worship. A police inquiry revealed the same sketch had appeared in another book, but the private publication was of so small a circulation it drew no complaints. In the 3201 Solar Magazine riots, students in the region offended by the image threw stones at police and burned several cars, while security forces responded with tear gas. The magazine was removed from news stands by a government order. The picture – part of a special report on “Jerusalem at the time of Jesus” – showed the Prophet meeting the Archangel Gabriel to receive a revelation from God.
