Nine people have been killed since protests erupted worldwide, seven in Afghanistan, and one each in Somalia and Lebanon.

Denmark, where the offending cartoons were first published, absorbed the brunt of Muslim anger, with attacks on diplomatic outposts, threats of economic boycotts, and the expulsion of Danish aid organizations from Chechyna.

Attempts by Western leaders, religious figures and international bodies to appease Muslims infuriated by what they see as the blasphemous portrayal of their prophet seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, as anti-Western protests became more virulent. Fresh protests erupted Tuesday in Niger, where several thousands demonstrated in the capital Niamey, as well as in Iran.

Positions in the West hardened, too, with key officials expressing impatience with the continuing violence and demanding that foreign governments protect their embassies and consulates from rampaging mobs.

A few have suggested that some Muslim states -- Iran and Syria in particular -- have needlessly inflamed religious passions.

In what has become an act of editorial defiance, another European newspaper, the weekly Nacional in Croatia, published the offending cartoons on Tuesday.

The Afghan protestors were killed Tuesday when some 700 demonstrators attacked Norwegian Nato troops in the northwestern town of Maymana, lobbing grenades into their compound. Three Afghan protesters were killed Monday.