23 Feb 2012

Further protests after copies of Koran burned

3:24 pm on 23 February 2012

There has been a second day of protests in Afghanistan over the burning of copies of the Koran by NATO troops. At least six people were killed and 10 people wounded when shots were fired.

Witnesses say the shots were fired by the Afghan police.

Protesters chanted ''Death to America'' outside a US military base on the outskirts of Kabul.

Separate protests were held in the eastern city of Jalalabad where the highway was blocked.

NATO says the Korans were inadvertently taken to an incineration facility, along with other material.

Labourers found charred copies of the Koran there while collecting rubbish at Bagram airbase.

Officials at Bagram reportedly believed Taliban prisoners were using the books to pass messages to each other.

The US military commander in Afganistan and the White House have apologised for the incident.