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Monday
Mar142011

Libya, Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Can a Proposal Avert A Crisis?

1915 GMT: A resident has told Reuters that regime forces are now in control of Zuara in the west of Libya.

1730 GMT: Media are reporting that regime tanks have entered the opposition-held town of Zuara, in the far west of Libya, and are moving toward the centre of the town.

1720 GMT: The Foreign Minister of the UAE says the country has sent 500 police to Bahrain.

1710 GMT: At least 30 people were injured when police opened fire on protesters in Marib Province in eastern Yemen.

Police also shot live ammunition at protesters in northeastern Jawf Province. In the capital, Sanaa, soldiers and armoured vehicles tried to cut off and surround an area near the university building where thousands of protesters have camped out for weeks.

Video of Sunday's clashes in Sanaa in Yemen that killed two and injured dozens:

1640 GMT: In Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood has endorsed proposed constitutional amendments and are calling on everyone to participate in the referendum this week.

"The constitutional amendments are the most suitable, not the most ideal, solution for this transitional period that cannot drag on for too long," Brotherhood deputy Khairat Shater said.

The Brotherhood is also proposing the creation of a unified electoral list to include all political figures before the coming parliamentary elections, and it is declaring "that it does not seek the majority of seats in Parliament". Instead, the group aims to run for 35-40% of the seats, and it will not seek the Presidency.

1620 GMT: Thanks to James Miller for stepping in this afternoon and sharing the LiveBlog.

More on the expulsion from Yemen today of four freelance journalists for US publications. Two are US citizens -- Haley Sweetland Edwards, who writes for the Los Angeles Times, and Joshua Maricich, a photographer, and two are Britons —-- Portia Walker, who writes for the Washington Post, and Oliver Holmes, who writes for the Wall Street Journal and Time magazine.

Armed security forces burst into the apartment the journalists shared. They were detained for several hours at the immigration authority, where their phones and passports were taken, before being told by a man who identified himself as Colonel Mohsin that they would be expelled from Yemen for “national security reasons".

The four were allowed back in their apartment to gather their belongs before heading to the airport, but with an escort of about six armed soldiers.

1515 GMT: Libya - Rebel forces have lost the town of Brega. The town has been retaken by pro-Gaddafi forces. General Abdel Fatah Yunis, former Interior Minister who resigned to join the opposition, has called the move a "tactical withdrawal," an attempt to consolidate forces on more favorable terrain.

Cyber-war- The "GrayHatz Group" has replaced the homepage of Libyan State TV with a simple message, "Libya Freedom! Peoples of Liberty! Libyan State Television Hacked!"

Bahrain - Bahraini State TV is showing video of Saudia Arabian security forces inside Bahrain.

This picture allegedly shows part of the convoy. 

1509 GMT: Yemen - Governor of the Marib province, Ahmed Naji al-Zaidi was stabbed in the neck during anti-government protests. His convoy was attacked by armed men, and is is currently in the hospital in the nation's capital, Sanaa.

1431 GMT: Bahrain - The opposition group Wefaq has released a statement in response4 to reports that Saudi Arabian troops have moved across the main causeway into Bahrain.

"We consider the entry of any soldier or military machinery into the Kingdom of Bahrain's air, sea or land territories a blatant occupation.

"This real threat about the entry of Saudi and other Gulf forces into Bahrain to confront the defenceless Bahraini people puts the Bahraini people in real danger and threatens them with an undeclared war by armed troops."

1418 GMT: Al Jazeera English is reporting unconfirmed breaking news, that a large convoy of military forces is moving into Bahrain from Saudi Arabia. The report said that the main road between the two countries was blocked by the convoy.

1245 GMT: According to Al Jazeera English's sources, regime forces are attacking the opposition-held Zuara in the far west of Libya. One person has been killed and seven injured.

1230 GMT: A report comes in that foreign journalists from the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and Washington Post have been expelled from Yemen, with no explanation given.

1215 GMT: Al Arabiya reports that there are 1000 Saudi troops in Bahrain. The stated mission is to protect oil, power facilities, and banking centre.

Bahraini opposition groups, including the largest opposition party, Al Wefaq, said that any intervention by Gulf Arab forces is a declaration of war and occupation.

 

0855 GMT: Witnesses report a regime air strike on Ajdabiya in eastern Libya this morning, hitting part of a hospital and a military camp.

0845 GMT: Al Watan is claiming that Bahrain is getting security reinforcements from fellow Gulf Cooperation Council states, with the first Saudi forces arriving yesterday and the first units from the United Arab Emirates coming today.

0840 GMT: Mareb Press reports that 20 senior clerics in Yemen have called for the overthrow of the Government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

0830 GMT: In Morocco on Sunday, riot police broke up a protest by several hundred demonstrators injuring dozens with their truncheons.

The demonstrators, as they have over the past month, had gathered in Casablanca's main King Mohammed Square. Casablanca residents confirmed that riot police used truncheons. "I live in the city centre, it looks like it is under siege," said one resident.

Activists said the injured had broken ribs, fractured arms, and concussions.

Bahrain Latest in Video & Pictures: Protests, Gunfire, and Clashes

0820 GMT: The Bahrain News Agency carries a statement from a Parliamentary bloc asking King Hamad Bin Isa al-Khalifa  for a three-month declaration of martial law, as “extremist movements” are trying to disrupt the country and push it toward sectarian conflict.

The appeal also seeks a curfew and the dispatch of army units around the country.

0530 GMT: There was precious little confirmed news in Libya on Sunday, at least on the military front. Instead, the opposition and regime traded claims over the status of Brega in the north-centre of the country and Misurata in the west. 

The insurgents claimed they had re-taken Brega, lost earlier in the day, with a counter-attack; no, the regime insisted, it had cleared the town of the enemy. The opposition said Qaddafi's forces had been halted in an advance on Misurata by a mutiny in their ranks; the regime proclaimed that it was in the centre of the city.

So through Sunday, the crisis in Libya was overtaken by the building tension in Bahrain, where there was plenty of video and pictures to document clashes and protests. Early in the day, security forces tried to break up a demonstration at the Bahrain Financial Hub, using tear gas and live fire; police moved in force to a flyover near Pearl Roundabout, the centre of the protests, before withdrawing. Later, there was trouble at the University of Bahrain, where supporters of the monarchy allegedly attacked about 5000 students as they tried to move onto the campus.

Almost lost in the turmoil, at least outside Bahrain, was a seven-point proposal by Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa in a televised speech last night: 1. Parliament with full powers; 2. A representative government; 3. Fair constituencies; 4. Naturalisation for residents without citizenship; 5. Combating financial and administrative corruption; 6. Public properties; 7. Addressing sectarian tension.

 

 

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