President Barack Obama says the US would not consider Egypt an ally, "but
we don't consider them an enemy".
Obama said in an
interview with the Spanish-language network Telemundo that Egypt is a "new
government that is trying to find its way". And he warned that if the
Egyptian government takes actions showing "they're not taking
responsibility", then it would "be a real big problem".
Meanwhile,
protesters angered by an anti-Islam film stormed the US Embassy compound in
Yemen's capital, Sana'a on Thursday.
They were on the
embassy's grounds but did not enter the building housing the offices.
Demonstrators
removed the embassy's sign on the outer wall and set tires ablaze. Once inside
the compound, they brought down the US flag and burned it.
Counterterrorism
Yemen is home to
al-Qaeda's most active branch and the United States is the main foreign
supporter of the Yemeni government's counterterrorism campaign. The government
on Tuesday announced that al-Qaeda's No 2 leader in Yemen was killed in an
apparent US airstrike, a major blow to the terror network.
A senior
administration official here said the protests in Yemen appeared to be
motivated by the film seen by Muslims of disparaging the Prophet Muhammad. This
is an observation that Obama officials did not make regarding the attack on the
US Consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
Another official,
also speaking anonymously, said "the situation is Yemen is fluid. We're
receiving cooperation from Yemeni authorities to help us maintain order and
protect our people. The protests appear to be motivated by the film".
The officials
spoke only on grounds of anonymity because they weren't authorised to speak
publicly about the situation amid rapidly unfolding events.
US officials,
working with the Libyan government, were examining whether the armed assault on
the consulate in Libya was a planned and deliberate terrorist strike, and not
the spontaneous reaction to the anti-Islam video.
Condemned
In a statement,
the Yemeni embassy in Washington condemned the attack on the Sana'a compound.
"Given recent
regional events, earlier this morning, angry protesters have unfortunately
flooded the security perimeter of the US embassy in Sana'a, Yemen and breached
the embassy's wall," the statement said.
"Security services
have quickly restored order to the Embassy's complex. Fortunately no casualties
were reported from this chaotic incident. The government of Yemen will honour
international obligations to ensure the safety of diplomats and will step up
security presence around all foreign missions."
Telephone calls
The White House
said that Obama called the presidents of Libya and Egypt and urged them to
continue working with the United States to ensure the safety of diplomatic
personnel.
He thanked Libyan
President Mohamed Magariaf for his condolences over the deaths of US Ambassador
Chris Stevens and three other State Department officers during an assault on
the US consulate in Benghazi on Tuesday.
The White House
says the two leaders agreed to work together to bring the attackers to justice.
During a second
call, Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi promised that Egypt "would honor
its obligation to ensure the safety of American personnel", the White
House said.
Obama told Morsi
that while "he rejects efforts to denigrate Islam ... there is never any
justification for violence against innocents".
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