UNITED NATIONS (MCT) — During an appearance at the United Nations on Tuesday, President Barack Obama condemned the deadly anti-American protests that tore across the Middle East and North Africa and asked for patience during a “season of progress,” as he sought to defend his strategy for supporting fledgling democracies across the Arab world.

Speaking before a meeting of the General Assembly, Obama asked world leaders to reject intolerance and violence and to resist the temptation to crack down on dissidents. He touted his support for the shift to democracies in Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, and decried government violence against the people of Syria.