Charlie Hebdo Riot: Victims Burned In Churches

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A violent mob set light to at least eight churches in Niger as protests against Charlie Hebdo magazine left 10 people dead.

The mob rampaged through Niger's capital Niamey as anger mounted in several Muslim countries over the satirical magazine's depiction of the prophet Mohammed.

Five people were killed on Saturday, with two charred bodies found inside a a burned church on the outskirts of the capital.

The body of a woman was found inside a bar. She was believed to have asphyxiated from tear gas and smoke

Yesterday, a rally against Charlie Hebdo in the country's second city of Zinder left five dead and 45 injured.

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Gallery: Niger Protests Over Charlie Hebdo

Smoke billows in a street near the grand mosque in Niamey as people demonstrate against French weekly Charlie Hebdo's publication of a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed

This picture shows a charred vehicle burnt out during the protests, after thousands of protesters gathered following Friday prayers

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A ransacked church burns after it was set ablaze

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Protesters burned a French flag in the city of Zinder

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This church was ransacked before it was set ablaze

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Around 1,000 youths wielding iron bars, clubs and axes stormed through Niamey on Saturday, hurling rocks at police who responded with tear gas.

The French embassy in Niamey urged its citizens to stay at home.

"Be very cautious, avoid going out," the embassy said on its website as rioters also ransacked several French-linked businesses, including telephone kiosks run by Orange.

Some 20 Muslim scholars called for calm in the Niger capital.

"Don't forget that Islam is against violence. I urge men and women, boys and girls to calm down," one of the Muslim elders, preacher Yaou Sonna, told state television in Niamey.

In his first reaction to the violence, which also erupted in Pakistan on Friday, President Francois Hollande emphasised that "freedom of expression" was "non-negotiable."

Meanwhile, one of the brothers who launched the attack against the Charlie Hebdo magazine has been buried in an unmarked grave.

Said Kouachi was buried in secret on Friday in the eastern city of Reims.

The mayor of Reims had earlier voiced his opposition to the burial saying that the grave could become a shrine.

With France still reeling from last week's deadly attacks that killed 17 people, countries across Europe have stepped up security.

Soldiers are patrolling the streets of Belgium for the first time in 35 years.

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Muke Nyerate