Tunisian Revolution and the Middle East

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...EN967120110316

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama called the kings of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and urged them to exercise "maximum restraint" with protesters and to pursue political dialogue, White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Wednesday.

[The Brave Little Toaster Oven]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...EN967120110316

[visionary]

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/mi...510419253.html

Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, has said he is willing to visit the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip in an effort to promote reconciliation between the rival Fatah and Hamas factions.

In a speech on Wednesday, Abbas also said he won't run for re-election. Abbas' plan includes fresh elections for both presidency and parliament within six months.

This is the first time Abbas has said explicitly he won't seek another term.

However, it's not clear that elections will be held because Abbas says they cannot take place if the West Bank and Gaza don't reunite.

Abbas has not been in Gaza since Hamas fighters overran the territory in June 2007, leaving his Fatah party controlling only the West Bank.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians attended rallies in Gaza and the West Bank on Tuesday to call for a national dialogue between the two factions.

Crowds in Ramallah and Gaza City urged leaders to put their differences aside in the cause of Palestinian unity.

Johnston also said demonstrations by students of Al-Azhar University in Gaza, which is affiliated to Fatah, were brutally broken up by Hamas.

"They [Hamas] closed the university gates, barred students from leaving, while men in plain clothes with sticks beat up students and journalists in trying to clear the area.

"Students in Gaza are very sceptical because they say that on one hand Hamas is calling for national reconciliation and on the other it is breaking up demonstrations demanding the same thing."

[visionary]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12769168

The UN human rights chief has condemned the "shocking" use of force by security forces against protesters in Bahrain.

Navi Pillay said reports of a military takeover of hospitals was a blatant violation of international law.

She urged the authorities to rein in their forces, citing reports of people being beaten and detained or killed.

At least six opposition figures have reportedly been detained in overnight raids in Bahrain, and soldiers are back on the streets of the capital, Manama.

The crackdown on anti-government protesters in the city's centre left at least three civilians and three police officers dead on Wednesday.

---------- Post added March-17th-2011 at 10:56 AM ----------

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/mi...318735470.html

Several opposition leaders and activists have been arrested in Bahrain following a violent crackdown on anti-government protests in the Gulf kingdom.

State television said "leaders of the civil strife" had been arrested for communicating with foreign countries and inciting murder and destruction of property.

Among those arrested were Hassan Mushaima, who had returned last month from self-imposed exile in the UK after the Bahraini authorities dropped charges against him, and Ibrahim Sharif, head of the Waad political society, a secular group comprising mostly Sunni members.

Also taken into custody on early on Thursday was Abdul Jalil al-Singace, a leader of the Haq movement, who was jailed last August but was freed in late February as part of concessions by the Khalifa royal family to protesters.

Al Jazeera's correspondent, reporting from the capital, Manama, said a crackdown on the opposition's main voices was under way.

"Significant members of the opposition were arrested overnight, including some prominent activists. Soldiers broke into the houses of these figures early in the morning and made these arrests," he said.

Detained opposition activists:
Hassan Mushaima
Abdul Jalil al-Singace
Abdul Wahad Hussein
Hassan Hadad
Ibrahim Sharif
Abdul Hadi al-Mokhdar

[twa]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...72G1BA20110317
(Reuters) - The Gulf Arab state of Bahrain has arrested opposition figures for communicating with foreign countries and inciting murder and destruction of property, state television said on Thursday.

A statement said the unnamed men were "leaders of the civil strife" who had "communicated with foreign countries, and they incited killing of citizens and destruction of public and private property". It did not say how many had been arrested.

Members of the opposition bloc Wefaq said earlier that six opposition leaders had been arrested on Thursday morning.

[visionary]

BAHRAIN
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/midd...bahrain-unrest

4:29pm UN rights chief Navi Pillay says any takeover by the security forces of hospitals and medical facilities was a "blatant violation of international law."

"There are reports of arbitrary arrests, killings, beatings of protesters and of medical personnel, and of the takeover of hospitals and medical centres by various security forces," she said. "This is shocking and illegal conduct."

4:51pm Amnesty International has released a report saying security forces used live ammunition and extreme force against protesters in February without warning and impeded and assaulted medical staff trying to help the wounded.

The group says Dr Hani Mowafi, a US medic who was part of an Amnesty team in Bahrain, "found a pattern of fatal and serious injuries during February’s violence showing that the security forces used live ammunition at close range, and apparently targeted protesters’ heads, chests and abdomens. They also fired medium-to-large calibre bullets from high-powered rifles on 18 February."

5:54pm The leader of Al-Wafaq, the largest opposition group, calls on Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah to withdraw his forces from Bahrain.

"The military should withdraw from Bahrain, the military of Saudi Arabia, and this is a call to the Saudi king, King Abdullah," Sheikh Ali Salman, the leader of the head of the group, tells Al Jazeera.

---------- Post added March-17th-2011 at 06:10 PM ----------

YEMEN
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/mi...543671436.html

'Dozens injured' in renewed Yemen protests
Security forces use live fire and tear gas to disperse protesters demanding president's ouster, activists say.
Last Modified: 17 Mar 2011 15:15

Dozens of people have been reported injured in Yemen as security forces used live fire and tear gas to disperse protesters demanding the ouster of president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Activists in the southern city of Taiz said police opened fire on pro-democracy protesters on Thursday, leaving many wounded.

Meanwhile, at least 20 people were injured in the capital, Sanaa, as security forces reportedly fired live bullets and tear gas at thousands of anti-government protesters camping outside a university.

The incidents came a day after at least 120 people were wounded in renewed clashes between pro- and anti-government protesters in the port city of al-Hudayah.

Ten protesters were shot, and dozens were stabbed and hit with rocks, a medical official told the Associated Press news agency.

[visionary]

BAHRAIN

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/live/midd...-blog-march-18

1:45pm Several thousand Bahrainis are protesting in the town of Diraz following Friday prayers, chanting anti-regime slogans, despite a government ban on demonstrations, AFP reports.

"We sacrifice blood and soul for Bahrain," they chanted, as well as calls for restraint and non-violence in the face of a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations in recent days.

1:47pm AFP reports that Qatari military official gives confirmation that his country's troops are in Bahrain.

"The duty of the Qatari force participating in the Peninsula Shield force is to contribute in restoring order and security" in Bahrain, Qatar news agency QNA quoted Colonel Abdullah Al-Hajri as saying.

"As a Qatari force we are receiving our orders from the head of the joint Peninsula Shield Force. There are no Qatari forces outside the Peninsula Shield" in Bahrain, Hajri said.

1:51pm Thousands had gathered to listen to a Friday sermon in Diraz by Sheikh Issa Qassem, Bahrain's senior Shiite cleric, before the demonstrations began.

People demanding rights and reform "do not believe in violence that authorities are trying to push them to," Qassem said in his sermon.

"The peaceful approach has been our choice since day one," he said. The crowd chanted "Allahu akbar" (God is greatest), and "we will not be humiliated!"

2:00pm Pictures sent to us after Friday payers in Diraz, a town on the north west coast of Bahrain.

http://twitter.com/angryarabiya

Brother of martyr "we saw the rest of my brothers brain on the ground. We took it n kept it to be buried with his body" #bahrain #sitra 34 minutes ago via Twitter for BlackBerry®

A witness to the killing of martyr says after they shot him in the head they started kicking his lifeless body n hittin him with their guns. about 1 hour ago via Twitter for BlackBerry®

YEMEN

http://twitter.com/marwame

Caller on AJA: At least 10 dead and more than 100 injured after #Yemen govt. forces opened fire on pro-democracy protesters. 2 minutes ago via HootSuite

---------- Post added March-18th-2011 at 08:09 AM ----------

Lots of people shot in Yemen this morning, very bloody and gruesome pictures on tv right now. Watching on Al Jazeera English

http://twitter.com/virtualactivism

AlJaz breaking: upgraded - 28 dead and approx 200 injured according to medical sources. On AlJaz live footage from Sanaa 9 minutes ago via TweetDeck

AlJaz apologizing for graphic coverage saying we just had to show what's happening on the ground in #Yemen. Scenes r horrendous! 5 minutes ago via TweetDeck

According to Al Jazeera there were snipers on the roofs there shooting people.

Al Jazeera now reporting that at least 30 people are dead.

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/bencnn

Medical sources in San'a, Yemen: 33 killed during anti-regime protests. #Jan25 1 minute ago via web

President Saleh is supposed to be speaking soon.

---------- Post added March-18th-2011 at 09:22 AM ----------

http://twitter.com/HelpBahrain

Ladies and gentlemen, the ruling family have just demolished Pearl Roundabout http://plixi.com/p/84898724 31 minutes ago via web

@khalidalkhalifa You've destroyed one of the country's most symbolic and historical landmarks without the consent of the Bahraini people 14 minutes ago via web

---------- Post added March-18th-2011 at 09:29 AM ----------

UPDATE
There's reports of more protests in Syria for the third day in a row and now clashes there as well.

http://twitter.com/iyad_elbaghdadi

Very tense in #Syria right now. May God be with them. 13 minutes ago via web

Clashes now within the Ummayyad Mosque in Damascus. #Syria 6 minutes ago via web

Damascus, Homs, Daraa, Aleppo, Baniyas, are revoluting right now in #Syria. 3 minutes ago via web

Umayyad Mosque protests (video) 18 Mar 2011: http://bit.ly/eqVBXR #Syria half a minute ago via web

Khalid bin al Walid Mosque protests in Homs: http://bit.ly/fGoqnN #Syria 2 minutes ago via web

http://twitter.com/Tharwacolamus

http://me.lt/9PPcr Another video of clashes within Umayyad Mosques in #Syria #Damascus #March15 فيديو آخر للتظاهرات في الجامع الأموي دمشق 22 minutes ago via RockMelt

[HD]‏ http://me.lt/9PPcQ Another video from #Umayyad Mosque #Damascus #March15 - فيديو آخر للاشتباكات في الجامع الأموي في دمشق 17 minutes ago via RockMelt

[visionary]

YEMEN
http://twitter.com/acarvin

Obama: "I strongly condemn the violence that has taken place in Yemen today...." 2 minutes ago via TweetDeck

Obama: "... and call on President Saleh to adhere to his public pledge to allow demonstrations to take place peacefully." 2 minutes ago via TweetDeck

Obama: "Those responsible for today’s violence must be held accountable." #yemen 1 minute ago via TweetDeck

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/mi...434957754.html

Yemen declares 'state of emergency'
President announces state of emergency after dozens are killed in a crackdown on anti-government protests.

Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Yemeni president, has declared a nationwide state of emergency, after a violent crackdown on anti-government protests killed at least 30 people, and left scores more wounded, in the capital Sanaa.

Saleh said on Friday that the decision to impose the state of emergency was made by the country's national security council, but there was no immediate indication of how long it would last.

The Reuters news agency reported Saleh as saying that it was clear that there were "armed elements" amongst anti-government protesters, and that the clashes earlier in the day were between citizens and protesters, not protesters and security forces.

I read on twitter earlier that he is banning the carrying of weapons in Yemen.
Not sure if that's true or not.
I think his government could fall apart soon if massacres like this continue.

SYRIA

http://twitter.com/Egyptocracy

Reuters: One dead and tens injured in the southern Syrian city of Deraa. #Syria 5 minutes ago via Twitter for iPhone

---------- Post added March-18th-2011 at 01:34 PM ----------

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/19/wo...n.html?_r=1&hp

Bahrain Tears Down Monument as Protesters Seethe
By ETHAN BRONNER
Published: March 18, 2011

MANAMA, Bahrain — Bahrain on Friday tore down the defining monument, the pearl at the center of Pearl Square, in a symbolic end to the popular protests put down by the government. The official news agency described the razing as a facelift.

It was one more strike at the movement, part of a chain of events that, in a matter of days, turned Bahrain from a symbol of hopeful pro-democratic protest into one of violent repression

There have been reports on twitter now of people all across Bahrain crying out Allah Akbhar in defiance of the government and gunshots going off afterward in the direction of those protesting.
(this is very similar to what protesters did in Iran during their recent failed Green Revolution and how they were responded to by their government)

I'm also seeing reports of gunfire against protesters in Syria.

[visionary]

YEMEN

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/mi...434957754.html

Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Yemeni president, has declared a nationwide state of emergency, after a violent crackdown on anti-government protests killed at least 41 people, and left scores more wounded, in the capital Sanaa.

Saleh said on Friday that the decision to impose the state of emergency was made by the country's national security council, but there was no immediate indication of how long it would last.

"The national security council announces a state of emergency across Yemen, and a curfew is set upon armed people in all Yemeni provinces. And the security forces with the army will take responsibility for stability," he said.

SYRIA

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/mi...214964640.html

Protests have erupted in at least three towns across Syria in the most serious case of unrest in decades for a country that has been ruled with strict emergency laws for almost half a century.

Witnesses reported that at least three people had been killed by security forces in the southern city of Deraa on Friday, where anti-government demonstrators had gathered after midday prayers.

The three were reportedly among several thousand people in the city who chanted "God, Syria, Freedom" while accusing president Bashar al-Assad's family of corruption.

Witnesses said security forces were reinforced with troops who landed in the city's football stadium in helicopters.

"The confrontations are ongoing. They are heavy," a witness told the Reuters news agency.

Hundreds of protesters were reported to have been injured.

[visionary]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/...ex.html?hpt=T2

U.N. secretary-general condemns reported Syrian rioting deaths
From Caroline Faraj, CNN
March 18, 2011 6:49 p.m. EDT
The use of lethal force against peaceful demonstrators in Syria was deemed "unacceptable" Friday by the U.N. secretary-general.

Ban Ki-Moon said in a statement that he is "concerned about the reported killing of demonstrators" in Diraa, Syria.

Witnesses said riots erupted Friday in the Middle Eastern nation. It is the latest of a string of Arabic-speaking nations beset with discontent.

The unrest spread through Hims, Diraa, Banyaas, Der Elzour and the capital, Damascus, witnesses said, and there were claims of deaths and injuries, but the assertions could not be independently confirmed.
Calling it "the responsibility of the government to listen to the legitimate aspirations of the people," Ban urged Syrian authorities to refrain from violence and to abide by their international commitments regarding human rights, which guarantee the freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom of the press and the right to peaceful assembly.

His comments were echoed Friday by the United States, which urged the Syrian government to "address the legitimate aspirations" of its people.

"The United States strongly condemns the violence that has taken place in Syria today and calls on the Syrian government to allow demonstrations to take place peacefully. Those responsible for today's violence must be held accountable," said U.S. National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor.

[visionary]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa...ex.html?hpt=T2

Egypt considers constitutional amendments
By Reza Sayah, CNN
March 19, 2011 9:12 a.m. EDT

Cairo, Egypt (CNN) -- Egyptians proudly streamed to the polls Saturday to vote on proposed constitutional amendments, the first democratic initiative after the fall of Hosni Mubarak's regime.

An estimated 45 million Egyptians are eligible to vote in what is widely viewed as the country's first free election in decades, and the poll would set the stage for parliamentary and presidential elections later this year.

"I am very very happy," said Mohamed El Hourushy, a 19-year-old political science student. "This is something I've been fighting for all my life. I didn't think I would live to see this scene."

The proposed amendments include limiting the president to two four-year terms, capping emergency laws to six months unless they are extended by public referendum, and placing elections under judicial oversight.

Opponents say the proposed amendments were rushed and fall short of the people's demands. Many demand a new constitution and claim an early referendum gives an unfair edge to the Muslim Brotherhood and remnants of Mubarak's National Democratic Party -- well entrenched and politically savvy groups that are much better prepared to mobilize voters than newer factions still scrambling to get organized.

But presidential candidate and head of the Arab League, Amr Moussa, who is urging a "no" vote, lauded the referendum as "the first official step towards the democracy called for in the January 25 movements."

" 'Yes' or 'no' is not the issue -- that Egyptians are participating and voting today is what's important," he said.

[visionary]

Apparently El Baradei was unable to vote due to a crowd attacking him on the way to the polling station.
I just saw footage of him trying to wade through the crowd on Al Jazeera.

[visionary]

EGYPT

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/middle-ea...-egyptian-vote

Three hours into Egypt's constitutional referendum, we're hearing reports of high turnout - and potential irregularities.

Voters have reported long lines (see the photos below), with some predicting an hours-long wait to cast their votes. That's mostly been viewed as a positive development, a sign of high voter enthusiasm - a major change from last year's fraudulent parliamentary election, which saw turnout as low as 10 per cent in some parts of the country.

But some voters are reporting a more serious problem: unstamped ballot papers.

Each ballot needs an official stamp on the back, or it can be thrown out as illegitimate. What we're hearing is that some polling centres in Cairo and its suburbs are distributing unstamped papers. In some cases, election judges will (when asked) provide stamped papers; in other cases, they refuse, offering instead to sign the ballots - which does not legitimize them.

SYRIA

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/mi...234678272.html

Syrian mourners call for revolt
Thousands attending funeral for slain pro-democracy protesters call for "freedom" as police fire tear gas.

Thousands of people gathering in Syria's southern city of Daraa to mourn the deaths of two people killed by security forces have called for "revolution" in the country.

Police sealed off the city and fired tear gas to disperse the crowds who had turned out for the funerals of Wissam Ayyash and Mahmoud al-Jawabra, two of five people killed when security forces opened fire on protesters a day earlier.

Mazen Darwish, a prominent Syrian rights activist, said police had sealed the city with people being allowed out but unable to enter and other activists reported dozens of arrests.

The latest crackdown follows protests on Friday where, inspired by the revolts sweeping through the Arab world, demonstrators had called for political freedoms and an end to corruption in Syria.

Three to four thousand people leaving the city's Omari mosque after midday prayers chanted "God, Syria, Freedom" and slogans accusing the president's family of corruption, residents said.

But in the most violent response in years to protests against Syria's ruling elite, five people were killed when security forces opened fire on the protest.

---------- Post added March-19th-2011 at 05:35 PM ----------


ALGERIA

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/af...733727477.html

Algerian president 'promises reforms'
Abdelaziz Bouteflika vows to open a new page of "political reforms" as security forces block pro-democracy protests.
Last Modified: 19 Mar 2011 19:30

Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the Algerian president, has promised wide-ranging political reforms in his country, while security forces blocked planned protests in the capital Algiers.

In comments carried on state media on Saturday, Bouteflika said that the lifting of Algeria's 19-year-old state of emergency last month was the first step on the way to reform.

The end of the emergency "will be a new page opened on the path to comprehensive reforms ... which cannot be fruitful in the absence of political reforms," the APS news agency quoted Bouteflika as saying, but gave no details about the reforms.

In Algiers security forces swamped the capital, hampering two rallies, one called by youths through the social networking website Facebook, due outside the main post office, and another at the nearby May 1 Square, called by the National Co-ordination for Change and Democracy (CNDC).

The planned protest was the seventh attempt since January by the CNDC to stage a weekly demonstration, along the lines of pro-democracy protests sweeping the Arab world, in defiance of a ban on protests in the capital imposed in 2001.

---------- Post added March-19th-2011 at 05:39 PM ----------

YEMEN

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/mi...335486248.html

Yemen opposition activists clash with police
Security forces open fire in southern city of Aden, a day after emergency was declared following a bloody crackdown.

Police have stormed a protest camp in southern Yemen where thousands are calling for the ouster of Ali Abdullah Saleh, the country's longtime president.

Saturday's raid was the latest attempt by security forces to quell growing unrest.

Protesters say police fired tear gas and live rounds in the southern port city of Aden, wounding three anti-government protesters.

Meanwhile, two prominent members of Yemen's ruling party resigned on Saturday in protest against the killing of the anti-government protesters a day before.

"I find myself compelled to submit my resignation ... after the heinous massacre in Sanaa yesterday," Nasr Taha Mustafa, head of the state news agency and a leading ruling party member, said.

While, Mohamed Saleh Qara'a, another party member, told Reuters he had quit because of the "completely unacceptable" violence.

[Zguy28]

I tried to read this thread and my eyes started burning from all the bold text.