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Video: Libyans claim Gaddafi shipping in African mercenaries to crack down on protesters
China cracks down on call for ‘Jasmine Revolution’
The Associated Press
Saturday, February 19, 2011; 10:05 AM
BEIJING — Chinese authorities cracked down on activists as a call circulated for people to gather in more than a dozen cities Sunday for a “Jasmine Revolution.”
The source of the call was not known, but authorities moved to halt its spread online. Searches for the word “jasmine” were blocked Saturday on China’s largest Twitter-like microblog, and the website where the request first appeared said it was hit by an attack.
Activists seemed not to know what to make of the call to protest, even as they passed it on. They said they were unaware of any known group being involved in the request for citizens to gather in 13 cities and shout “We want food, we want work, we want Read more…
Libya Crackdown on Protests Kills 24: Rights Group
CAIRO – Libyan security forces killed at least 24 people in a violent crackdown on anti-regime demonstrations during a “Day of Anger” against strongman Moamer Kadhafi, Human Rights Watch said Friday.
The New York-based rights group, citing witnesses, said 24 protesters were killed and scores injured during Thursday’s assaults on protests in two Libyan cities. The New York-based rights group, citing witnesses, said 24 protesters were killed and scores injured during Thursday’s assaults on protests in two Libyan cities.
“The authorities should cease the use of lethal force unless absolutely necessary to protect lives and open an independent investigation into the lethal shootings,” HRW said in a statement.
The regime of Kadhafi, who has been in power since 1969, vied to counter the swelling opposition movement with its own pro-government rallies in the capital Tripoli and other cities.
But the unrest has deepened as the opposition mobilises via Facebook and mobile phone messages, emulating protest movements across North Africa and the Middle East that have already brought down the regimes in Egypt and Tunisia.
Geneva-based Human Rights Solidarity, citing witnesses, meanwhile said rooftop snipers in Read more…
Libya, Jordan And Yemen Hit By Renewed Unrest
Renewed civil unrest inspired by the recent uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt is being reported in three other Middle Eastern countries – Libya, Yemen and Jordan.
Libyan authorities have deployed troops in the second city of Benghazi following night time rallies over the killings of more than 20 protesters.
A major demonstration is taking place in the northern city of Tobruk and in Tripoli three people have reportedly been killed in an attempted jail break, according to security officials.
Libya has issued no casualty or injury figures after two days of protests.
But Human Rights Watch, quoting sources in the country, said at least 24 people have been killed by Libyan security forces who are using live fire.
Libya exerts strict controls on media and communications, making independent verification of claims about the unrest difficult to obtain.
Foreign journalists have been forbidden from entering the country by Colonel Gaddafi who appears to be trying to shut the country off to the outside world.
Libya’s state news agency, JANA, has made no mention of any violence. However, it has reported that “popular rallies” have taken place in “various Libyan cities to express support for the leader”.
Gaddafi’s rule of over 40 years makes him the longest-serving leader of the Arab world and of Read more…
WikiLeaks Cables: Repression Has Effectively Limited Libyans’ Vision for Reform
Libyans are mobilizing for a “Day of Rage” today on February 17. Protesters in the early afternoon, according to a member of the Libyan Youth Movement, were reported to be moving to the Security Headquarters in Benghazi. The protests are said to be gaining numbers and are headed for Maydan al Shajara once more, a location that had been the site of gunfire and petrol bombs.
The same individual also reports shortages of medical supplies at Al Bayda hospital and urges international health organizations to help out. And the movement member shared reports of people in Benghazi managed to chase away “pro-government Gaddafi thugs” by throwing rocks at them.
Many in Libya believed ahead of the “Day of Rage” that the Gaddafi regime was planning to threaten Libyans with live fire and the targeting of family members if they participated in anti-government protests. Also, it was reported that Gaddafi was having government employees go protest at pro-Gaddafi rallies, and, if they refused, they would be fired.
Cables released on Libya provide context for the protests that are Read more…
Two Iranian Warships May Pass Through Suez Canal, Israel’s Lieberman Says
By Gwen Ackerman
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that two Iranian gunboats are planning to sail late today to Syria through Egypt’s Suez Canal in what he called a “provocation.”
“Regretfully, the international community isn’t showing readiness to deal with the recurring Iranian provocations,” Lieberman said today in a speech to U.S. Jewish leaders in Jerusalem. “The international community must understand that Israel can’t ignore forever these kinds of provocations.”
The Israeli statement comes five days after Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak stepped down and unrest in North Africa spread to the Persian Gulf, where Bahrain and Iran have seen anti-government protests since Feb. 14. Israeli leaders have voiced concern that Iran may exploit Read more…
Hundreds of Libyans demand the government’s ouster
Hundreds of Libyans calling for the government’s ouster took to the streets Wednesday in the country’s second-largest city as Egypt-inspired unrest spread to the country long ruled by Moammar Kadafi.
Ashur Shamis, a Libyan opposition activist in London, said the protests began Tuesday in the port city of Benghazi, with demonstrators chanting, “No God but Allah, Moammar is the enemy of Allah” and “Down, down to corruption and to the corrupt.”
But police and armed government backers quickly clamped down on the protesters, firing rubber bullets, he said.
Witnesses and videos posted on the Internet showed protesters calling for a Libyan uprising and chanting slogans against Kadafi, who has held virtually unchecked power for more than four decades, as well as Read more…
Leaked cables reveal anger at regime may make Libya the next Arab domino to fall
THE violence and corruption of members of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s family have made Libya a gangster state with a worse record of governance than Egypt or Tunisia, according to leaked US diplomatic cables.
The documents reveal previously undisclosed details of how family greed, rivalry and extremism have complicated British and US efforts to normalize relations with Libya since it decided to abandon nuclear weapons and renounce terrorism. Gaddafi’s children plunder the country’s oil revenues, run a kleptocracy and operate a reign of terror that has created simmering hatred and resentment among the people, according to the cables released by WikiLeaks.
In the light of the upheavals in the Arab world, the diplomatic traffic also shows that far from being stable, Libya could be another corrupt authoritarian domino poised to fall.
One intriguing sequence of cables tells how Switzerland faced down threats after Swiss police arrested Hannibal Gaddafi, a younger son, and his wife for allegedly abusing two of their domestic staff.
Swiss police officers drew their guns and fought to disarm two Read more…
Saudis already have 2 Pakistani Nukes
It’s a story that pops up again and again. Saudi Arabia has acquired at least 2 functional Nuclear Weapons from cash strapped Pakistan. Certainly Saudi Arabia has the money to buy nukes from sources like France, China, Russia, North Korea and Pakistan or even India.
The worrisome thing is that Pakistani nukes may be on the move and the west has very little knowledge or control over it. Pakistan is the most dangerous country on earth. It has a population of 185 million and the majority of people there hate the west and hate Americans. Intelligence experts privately concede that the battle for Pakistan is over. They are now a de facto enemy of the U.S. Al Qaida, the Taliban and the Muslim Brotherhood have won. The ties between Read more…
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