As US drone attacks killed two members of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), protesters gathered in Yemen’s capital to release hundreds of balloons reading “Leave, Ali”—meaning President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Hundreds of Syrian soldiers stormed the Damascus suburb of Saqba and rounded up residents, witnesses said. Syrian activists say at least 1,000 people have been arrested across the country over the past week.
The lack of angry protests over the killing of Osama bin Laden indicates how al-Qaeda has been left behind by the Arab Spring. Only those who fetishize Osama because he fetishized America could fail to get it.
An explosion ripped through a military vehicle in the Yemeni town of Zinjibar, killing five soldiers, while four civilians died in the ensuing firefight—hours after an al-Qaeda leader vowed revenge for the killing of bin Laden.
Syrian army units clashed with each other in Daraa following President Assad’s orders to crack down on protesters. Some 50 were shot dead as tens of thousands took part in “day of rage” protests in Daraa and other cities.
At least nine were killed and more than 100 wounded as troops opened fire on anti-regime protesters in Sanaa, capital of Yemen. Meanwhile, hundreds have fled repression in Syria to take refuge in neighboring Lebanon.
Egypt’s public prosecutor ordered ousted leader Hosni Mubarak transferred from a private hospital in Sharm el-Sheikh to a prison hospital in Cairo after the ex-president’s doctor cleared him to travel.
Syrian authorities reportedly arrested hundreds of protesters and dissidents as the military surrounded Daraa and several other southwestern cities and villages. Telephone, electricity and water lines are cut to the besieged towns.
Security forces fired on anti-regime protesters in both Yemen’s city of Taez, where 10 are reported wounded, and Syria’s city of Daraa, where 25 are reported dead.
Human Rights Watch urged the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to reverse its decision to dissolve the board of directors of a prominent civil rights group.
Yemen’s President Ali Abdullah Saleh agreed to leave power after 32 years of rule. But the opposition said it could not guarantee at least one of Saleh’s demands—that demonstrations be halted.
Security forces and gunmen loyal to President Bashar al-Assad shot dead at least 70 demonstrators in Syria as thousands took to the streets for Friday protests across the country.
