TEHRAN (Reuters) - Scores of Iranian demonstrators hurled petrol bombs at the British embassy on Tuesday in renewed protests over the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammad and Western opposition to Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

The protesters, mostly religious seminary students, chanted "Death to Tony Blair", "Death to Britain" and Death to America" while throwing hundreds of stones at the embassy buildings, smashing many windows.

The Danish cartoons have been reproduced by only a handful of British media outlets, but much more widely in other European countries. Violent protests have also taken place outside the Tehran embassies of Denmark, Norway, Austria, France and Germany.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has accused Iran's and Syria's governments of stoking popular anger over the cartoons, but several Iranian officials have in recent days urged protesters not to attack or damage foreign embassies.

Among the crowd outside the British embassy were at least five donkeys draped with the flags of countries such as the United States and Denmark, and a dog wrapped in an Israeli flag. The crowd later burnt the flags.

"Insulting the Prophet disgusts us and nuclear energy gives us dignity," the crowd of about 200 people shouted. The West suspects Iran of trying to build nuclear weapons.

Cheers erupted when a petrol bomb was thrown over the high wall surrounding the embassy compound in central Tehran. Several other petrol bombs struck the wall and the embassy's main gate.

Scuffles broke out between the protesters and dozens of riot police trying to prevent the crowd from surging towards the embassy gates.

Stones and firecrackers were thrown at the nearby German embassy by a smaller crowd of protesters earlier on Tuesday.

"Europe, Europe this is the last warning. Mohammad is the Prophet of compassion, America is the cause of all misery," the crowd of about 50 chanted outside the German embassy.
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