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Danes, Norwegians fleeing Levant
Denmark and Norway said yesterday that their nationals had begun to leave Syria after protesters torched the buildings housing their embassies there in events the Danish foreign minister said were beyond comprehension.Danes were also told to leave Lebanon and Norwegians there were advised to remain indoors, after protesters in Beirut attacked the Danish consulate in protest against the publication of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) cartoons in both countries. I am horrified to see the way violence and attacks are spreading throughout the Middle East, Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller told reporters yesterday. The actions in Lebanon and Syria yesterday are beyond comprehension and totally unacceptable, he said. Some of the 70 Danes living in Syria left the country late on Saturday and others departed yesterday, foreign ministry spokesman Lars Thuesen said. Those who had not yet left were advised to stay indoors until we have found a way to get them out of there, he said. The Danish government is not currently providing transport for those wanting to leave but has offered assistance, he said. Thuesen said some Danes were reluctant to leave Syria as the situation appeared to calm down somewhat yesterday. But the foreign ministry insisted: The situation is still critical for Danes there. Those who opt to stay must be very careful. We have been working all night to contact our people and get them out (of Syria), Norwegian foreign ministry spokesman Oeystein Boe said. Of the up to 90 Norwegian nationals in Syria, 12 left Damascus for Oslo via Vienna, while 26 Norwegian families opted to stay in Syria for now. Norwegian embassy staff, including the ambassador, were operating from a hotel in the Syrian capital under police protection. Following the violent protest in Syria and further attacks in Lebanon, where the Danish embassy was set ablaze, Norway told all its embassies in Muslim countries to tighten security. We have sent out a precaution order to embassies in the Middle East and other countries with a large Muslim population to review their security contingency plans, to get in touch with the authorities and ask for extended security, Boe said. Norway also told its nationals living in Lebanon to remain indoors but has not, as yet, advised them to leave the country. Denmarks Stig Moeller said he was worried about the proportions the protests had taken. It is now a case that is much bigger than the issues of the drawings. Forces outside the political systems are now setting the agenda, he said. Stig Moeller said he had asked the Syrian and Lebanese governments to investigate the events, which he said went beyond damaging the relationship between those governments and Denmark. Its damaging the whole diplomatic system if countries cannot be sure that their embassies are safe, he said. Meanwhile, hundreds of Danes gathered in Copenhagen yesterday to appeal for peaceful dialogue to resolve the row. Local artists, couples and families assembled on the capitals main square in a demonstration that organisers said was apolitical and independent of different religious beliefs and cultures. Posted by: Dan Darling 2006-02-06 |
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