Seven killed in protests over US Koran burning

The anger over the Koran burning has sparked two days of protests across Afghanistan and tapped into anti-foreign sentiment fuelled by a popular perception that foreign troops disrespect Afghan culture and Islam.

The demonstrations prompted the US to lock down its embassy and bar its staff from travelling.

The Afghan Interior Ministry said in a statement that clashes during a protest in the eastern province of Parwan left four people dead. It said an investigation was under way to determine what happened.

The other deaths occurred at a US base outside Kabul, where security guards killed one person, and in Jalalabad and Logar province, the ministry said.