UN chief appeals for ‘calm’ after deadly protests sparked by ‘hateful’ anti-Islam film

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says there is no justification for the killings and brutality sparked by an anti-Islam film and is appealing for “calm and reason.”

The U.N. chief said it is “shameful” to exploit the fundamental right to freedom of expression by deliberately provoking bigotry and bloodshed with “a hateful, disgusting film.”

But Ban said it is also wrong to exploit the anger over the film, which “only feeds the cycle of recrimination and senseless violence.”

The movie denigrating the Prophet Muhammad sparked an attack in Libya that killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans and protests have spread to about 20 countries.

The secretary-general told a General Assembly meeting Friday promoting peace that at this tense time the world urgently needs “a culture of peace.”