A series of violent anti-American protests have erupted across predominantly Muslim countries in Africa and the Middle East, beginning Sept. 11.

After protests took place at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, Egypt, Sept. 11, unrest spread to Israel, Gaza, Libya, Egypt, Yemen, Sudan, Tunisia, Morocco, Iraq, Iran and Kashmir, a primarily Muslim province in India. Speculators believe that the protests were spurred by a 14-minute movie trailer that ridicules the Islamic prophet Muhammad as a child molester and murderer. As a result of the violence, YouTube has blocked access to the video in Libya and Egypt, but the video remains accessible in the U.S. and other nations.

U.S. ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and three other American consular officials were killed in an attack on the U.S. consulted in Benghazi, Libya. President Barack Obama spoke against the violence  and vowed to hunt down those responsible for the deaths in the Rose Garden at the White House alongside Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Sept. 12.

Some have speculated that the violence was orchestrated by terror groups tied to al-Qaeda. Bloomberg News stated Sept. 13 that chairman of the House Intelligence Committee Mike Rogers referred to the attacks as a “planned, targeted event.” However, a ongoing investigation by U.S. agencies, including the Federal Intelligence Agency, has not yet confirmed that the attacks were linked to al-Qaeda. #