CAIRO - Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in the Arab world Friday to rally against the Israeli offensive in Lebanon, which one regional leader branded a "genocidal war".
Clashes broke out in Cairo between police and protesters who had gathered after prayers at the Al-Azhar mosque in support of Lebanon and the Palestinians, both facing massive and deadly military operations by Israel.
Several thousand demonstrators, mostly members of the Muslim Brotherhood opposition, shouted anti-Israeli slogans and denounced the recognition of Israel by Arab governments including Jordan and Egypt -- the only two Arab states to have signed peace treaties with the Jewish state.
Some police officers and demonstrators were slightly injured when riots broke out.
In Jordan, some 2,000 people marched through Amman in support of Lebanon and the Palestinians after Friday prayers, heeding a call by Islamists and union leaders.
The demonstrators shouted "much-loved Sayed Hassan, hit Haifa and Tel Aviv," referring to Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, waving the flags of Hezbollah, the Muslim Brotherhood and those of Jordan and Lebanon.
Hundreds of Iraqi Shiites also marched in support of Lebanon's Hezbollah militia as imams led weekly prayers with condemnations of Israel, the United States and many Arab regimes.
Putting aside concerns about Baghdad's rapidly worsening security situation, Iraqis focused their anger on Israel's deadly 10-day-old bombardment of their co-religionists in Lebanon and on the international community's response.
More than 300 members of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada's al-Sadr's armed movement marched in the Baghdad neighborhood of Sadr City chanting support for Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite militia which triggered Israel's assault when it captured two soldiers 10 days ago.
And on Thursday, more than 100,000 people in Yemen turned out for a rally in support of the Lebanese and Palestinian peoples in the face of the Israeli blitz.
Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir accused Israel of targeting the Lebanese population as the death toll mounted.
"What is taking place in Lebanon is not a war against Hezbollah but is, rather, a genocidal war in which the forces of the Israeli enemy are targeting the civilians as well as the strategic positions and utilities," Beshir told reporters.
Syria's information minister accused Israel of "state terrorism" and "war crimes" in its offensive in Lebanon.
"Israeli aggression against Lebanon aims to divide this country, break its national resistance and dominate it," Mohsen Bilal said in an interview with Spanish daily El-Mundo, according to the SANA news agency.
The Arab parliament, which is made up of lawmakers from the 22 Arab League member states, accused Israel of crimes against humanity and called on the UN Security Council to "accept its responsibility" and end the Israeli bombardment of Lebanon.
Elsewhere in the region, senior Iranian cleric Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani hailed Hezbollah fighters as "heroes", but rejected mounting allegations that Iran and Syria were behind the Shiite movement's conflict with Israel.
"The Hezbollah forces have done a great job and have resisted well. They and their leader, our dear brother Hassan Nasrallah, are heroes," the influential cleric and former president said in his Friday prayer sermon in Tehran.
07/21/2006 14:14 GMT