Al-Qaeda said a deadly attack on US diplomats in Libya was in revenge for the killing of its number two, monitors reported Saturday, as Washington deployed forces to cope with global violence over a film mocking Islam. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) also called for more violence against US diplomatic missions in the Middle East and Africa, and urged Muslims living in the West to attack American interests, SITE Intelligence Group said. The terror network's Yemen offshoot did not claim direct responsibility for Tuesday's attack on the US consulate in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi that killed ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans. But it said the killing of Al-Qaeda deputy leader Sheikh Abu Yahya al-Libi in a drone strike in June "increased the enthusiasm and determination of the sons of (Libyan independence hero) Omar al-Mukhtar to take revenge upon those who attack our Prophet," according to SITE. "May the expulsion of embassies and consulates lead to the liberation of Arab lands from the American hegemony and arrogance," it said in another statement, adding it was a "duty" for Muslims on Western soil to attack US interests. In Afghanistan, Taliban armed with guns and rockets stormed the heavily fortified Camp Bastion where Britain's Prince Harry is deployed, killing two US Marines in an assault the militia said was to avenge the American-made film. The attack in Helmand province, which continued until Saturday morning, came after at least 11 protesters died on Friday as police battled to defend US missions from mobs in Egypt, Lebanon, Sudan, Tunisia and Yemen. Symbols of US influence in cities across the Muslim world have come under attack -- embassies and schools as well as fast food chains -- as protesters vented their fury at the low-budget film, "Innocence of Muslims." US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said Washington was configuring its forces to be able to cope with widespread violence following its deployment of Marine counter-terrorism units to Libya and Yemen and its stationing of two destroyers off the North African coast.
