Fire at US embassy in Honduras amid protests

Protesters in the Honduran capital Tegucigalpa set fire to a pile of tires placed at the front door of the U.S. Embassy. It was the latest incident in three weeks of street protests by teachers and medical workers over possible job cuts.

Tegucigalpa: The main entrance of the US embassy in the Honduran capital Tegucigalpa was left charred after demonstrators setting fire to tires and objects in front of the building on Friday.

State Department spokesperson later said that no embassy personnel were injured in the incident.

The fire came amid days of protests by education and medical professionals, who are urging the government not to privatize their sectors.

The US embassy had previously instructed the families of its employees to remain at home during the protest.

It was not immediately clear whether the embassy was the intended target of the demonstrators.

A senior state department official said that the incident did not appear to be serious and that staffers were seeking more information from the scene.

The state department spokesperson for Western Hemisphere Affairs later called the fire an unacceptable act of violence and said the embassy was working closely with Honduran authorities.