Fresh off a one-week hiatus following the Republican and Democratic National Conventions, Jon Stewart kicked off Monday’s episode by trying to make sense of the wave of violent protests sparked by an anti-Islam YouTube video.
“Oh well it’s YouTube, nobody pays attention to YouTube,” Stewart quipped, brushing off the possible butterfly effect of the movie. “That’ll be the last we hear of it.”
If only that were the case.
On the 11th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, violent protests erupted in Egypt and Libya in response to the movie, titled “Innocence of Muslims.” U.S. embassies and consulates came under siege in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, and the unrest has since spread to more than a dozen countries.
“So let me get this straight,” said an exasperated Stewart. “All this destruction and bloodshed was over a dumb Internet video made by some a—hole?”
The American-made video ridicules the Prophet Muhammad, depicting him as a fraud, a pedophile and a womanizer.
Picking up on the satirical tone of the video, Stewart was quick to point out that several years ago Egyptian state television aired a movie based on the protocols of the Elders of Zion, which was received with little backlash.
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“Did the Jews gain revenge by burning embassies?” Stewart ranted. “No! We got our revenge the old-fashioned way: a bad review in the Times. That is how we do it.”
To see Stewart's take on the anti-Islam film backlash, check out the full clip below, courtesy of Comedy Central: