Azerbaijan arrests 30 at protest over anti-Islam film

Police in Azerbaijan detained some 30 Muslim activists Monday while preventing a protest from breaking out near the U.S. embassy over a film mocking Islam that has triggered uproar in the Arab world. More than 100 protesters chanting "God is Great" attempted to reach the embassy in the capital Baku and stage an unauthorized rally against the U.S.-produced film. They were kept from advancing on the building by police wielding batons, with several protesters injured in the resulting clashes, an Agence France Presse correspondent said. The embassy earlier Monday had issued a warning to U.S. citizens about a protest "assumed to be connected to other anti-American demonstrations ongoing worldwide". The low-budget film, entitled "Innocence of Muslims", has sparked fury for mocking the Prophet Mohammed and portraying Muslims as immoral and violent. Energy-rich Azerbaijan is a mainly Shiite Muslim country. After decades of Soviet rule, it has emerged as one of the most secular states in the Islamic world and is a partner in the NATO-led campaign in Afghanistan.