Anti-American protests around the world were at their bloodiest in a northern Nigerian city where at least 200 people were killed in two days of religious clashes, residents told Reuters.
Al Jazeera satellite channel reported the same death toll as violence broke out in the city of Kano following a Muslim rally Friday against US-led air strikes on Afghanistan.
AFP, however, said the death toll in two days of riots in the northern Nigerian city rose to 11 on Sunday, although residents said many more could have been killed.
At least eight people were killed and dozens were injured on Saturday when three people were killed in new violence Sunday.
An AFP correspondent reported that the further riots in two areas of the city also left a number of houses razed.
"Three men were burnt this morning at Sheka quarters, while three houses were razed down at Sallari," he said.
But police said only four people were killed so far in the violence which has destroyed many houses, vehicles, churches, mosques and media offices.
"Only four people were killed. Our men have quelled the riots. Everywhere is now calm," said state police commissioner Yakubu Bello Uba.
However, a reporter with the Weekly Trust newspaper told AFP that dozens of corpses were being recovered across the city.
"I cannot be exact on the figure. Between 30 and 40 people may have been killed," he said.
Police and residents said hundreds of non-Muslims have taken refuge in police and army barracks following bloody riots.
"Around 100 people are in the police headquarters, while about 300 others are staying in the army barracks," a police officer, who asked not to be named, told AFP.
Houses deserted by non-Muslims were said to have been looted in fresh violence in the two districts.
Armed policemen and soldiers were still patrolling the streets to prevent further violence, he added.
A resident, Yussuf Garba, said scores of people fled to the barracks during the violence on Saturday.
"They were afraid of being killed, so they ran for their lives," he said.
Another resident, Lebanese trader Imad Fadlallak, told AFP the situation was calm Sunday morning.
"Everything is now calm. The police are still patrolling the streets to maintain law and order," he said.
He said shops and offices were still shut as most residents remained indoors.
"Nobody wants to take chances. People are not even going to churches. In fact, Kano is like a ghost city," he added.
Police said a dusk-to-dawn curfew had been imposed on the city, the largest in northern Nigeria, and that police had been ordered to "shoot troublemakers on sight".
Kano has the largest Muslim population in the country, and has been a hotbed of religious unrest over the past 20 years – Albawaba.com
