The ransacking of the Italian consulate in Benghazi was likely sparked by a League minister's controversial support for cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad, Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini told the Senate on Wednesday.
At least 11 people were killed and some 35 others were injured on Friday after police opened fire on a crowd trying to storm the consulate.
The protest was organised after Italian Reforms Minister Roberto Calderoli appeared on state-run TV with a T-shirt printed with cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad. Calderoli, who said his action was a show of support for freedom of speech in Europe, was forced to resign last weekend amid general outrage in Italy.
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi also quickly moved to subdue tension by firing Interior Minister Nasser al-Mabrouk Abdallah for using excessive force against the protesters and by declaring Sunday a day of mourning for the dead "martyrs".
"Without the motivation provided by Calderoli's statements, which were repeated and appeared to be
intentionally provocative, it would have been unlikely that Italian venues would have been targeted," Fini said.
But he stressed that "everyone was aware immediately that these were Calderoli's personal opinions and in no way reflected the responsible and constructive attitude of the government." Earlier this week, the minister had suggested that the ransacking could have been linked to attempts by Islamic fundamentalist infiltrators to destabilise leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Gaddafi has since dismissed this idea and Fini made it clear he had taken note of the Libyan leader's stance in his remarks to Senate. But nevertheless, he said, "not all" the violence in Libya "could be directly linked to the publication of the cartoons or to anti-Italian feelings connected to Calderoli's behaviour."
Fini reiterated his view that Calderoli should not have indulged in "immature or mocking behaviour" in view of his ministerial role.
Nevertheless the real problem, he said, is that "over the last few years there has been a dangerous drift in the Muslim world (towards fanaticism)."
"Fanatic sectors appear to be on the increase and they risk setting the world aflame."
"The danger arises from fundamentalism and not from religious faith," which "must be respected," said Fini.
The minister reiterated his well-known view that dialogue was the "only road to follow to avoid clashes
between civilizations"
Yet, dialogue with the Islamic world cannot be one-sided nor can the West have a "supine" attitude, he
added. "Respect for faiths means respecting all religions, starting naturally with the Christian faith, which is not only part of our heritage but is an indispensable component of our Italian and European identity."
