Protesters plunder, burn Libyan church

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Protesters plunder, burn Libyan church, convent; religious evacuate

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A Catholic church and convent in Benghazi, Libya, were plundered and burned just days after anti-Italian protests in Libya turned violent. The Feb. 20 attacks against the two religious properties forced the apostolic vicar of Benghazi, the rest of his Franciscan community, and the religious men and women who lived and worked in the diocese to be evacuated to the Libyan capital, Tripoli. Bishop Sylvester Magro of Benghazi told Vatican Radio Feb. 23 that "everything has gone up in smoke." Everything inside the church and friary was destroyed; "everything that could be set on fire was set on fire," he said. The blaze came just a few days after protests Feb. 17 targeting the Italian Consulate in Benghazi left at least 10 people dead. Demonstrators were condemning a recent incident in which an Italian government minister had unbuttoned his shirt on Italian television to display a T-shirt bearing an image of one of the Danish cartoons that have sparked condemnations and demonstrations in many Muslim communities.