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Big Move in Syria: Defectors Form Army

Formation of Free Syrian Army could lead to turnaround in uprising

(Newser) - A turnaround in the Syrian protests? That’s what supporters are hoping—and opponents are fearing—as a group of defectors attempts to organize an armed movement against President Bashar al-Assad. Until now, the protesters have been largely peaceful and mostly unarmed, and though defections had occurred in the past,...

Saleh Makes Surprise Return to Yemen

President's arrival will likely further enflame clashes

(Newser) - President Ali Abdullah Saleh returned today to the violence-torn Yemeni capital after more than three months of medical treatment in Saudi Arabia in a surprise move certain to further enflame battles between forces loyal to him and his opponents. Saleh left Yemen for Saudi Arabia in early June after he...

Gadhafi Rep: French, British 'Mercenaries' Captured

Provisional authority continues to struggle for full control

(Newser) - As Libya’s revolutionary forces continue to fight Moammar Gadhafi for control, a spokesperson for Gadhafi said yesterday that 17 “mercenaries” have been captured in regime stronghold Bani Walid. That number includes what he called mostly French "technical experts" and "consultative officers." Two are English, one...

Gadhafi Giving Out Chemical Weapons Suits, Gas Masks

Sparks renewed fears he'll use mustard gas

(Newser) - As Moammar Gadhafi appears to be entering his endgame, fears are increasing that the Libyan strongman might use chemical weapons against his own people. The Pentagon and other officials say Gadhafi’s remaining mustard gas, more than 11 tons, has been secured. But Libyan rebels are concerned because gas masks...

Syria Fires on Protesters, Slays 7 as Holiday Begins

On first day of Muslim holiday, security forces still firing at protesters

(Newser) - Syrian security forces killed seven people today as they opened fire to disperse thousands of protesters rallying against the regime on the first day of a Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan. Activists say security forces fired at protesters in the southern province of Daraa, in the central...

Syria Uprising: 5 More Protesters Killed
 5 More Killed in Syria 
Aug 28, 2011 4:12 PM CDT

5 More Killed in Syria

Arab League statement calling for peace rejected

(Newser) - Five more people were reported shot dead in Syria today, including a 12-year-old boy, as security forces continued cracking down on critics of President Bashar Assad. Meanwhile, Syria rejected a statement from the Arab League calling for an end to the violence as well as elections, an army withdrawal, the...

Moammar Gadhafi Almost Caught in Tripoli Safe House Yesterday: Report

 Rebels: We 
 Have Gadhafi 
 Surrounded 
UPDATED
Aug 25, 2011 9:09 AM CDT

Rebels: We Have Gadhafi Surrounded

Report follows near-miss yesterday

(Newser) - A group of Libyan rebels thinks it has Moammar Gadhafi right where it wants him. The rebels are currently exchanging fire with Gadhafi loyalists holed up in a cluster of apartment buildings near Gadhafi's breached compound in Tripoli, Reuters reports. The rebels are confident Gadhafi and some of his...

Journo Describes 'Terrifying' Time in Rixos Hotel

Journalists feared being killed, used as human shields

(Newser) - For the five days they were held in Tripoli’s Rixos Hotel by Moammar Gadhafi loyalists, Matthew Chance and his fellow journalists feared they could be executed or used as "human shields." "We had been acting out in our heads these paranoid scenarios," Chance told the...

4 Italian Journalists Abducted in Libya, Driver Killed

Journalists were on highway between Zawiyah and Tripoli

(Newser) - Italy's foreign ministry says four Italian journalists have been kidnapped and their driver killed, apparently by Libyan regime loyalists, as they traveled down the highway to Tripoli. The abductions occurred today on a stretch of highway between Zawiyah, 30 miles west of Tripoli, and the Libyan capital. Italian news...

BBC Convoy Attacked by Pro-Gadhafi Forces

Incident shows Tripoli far from stable, reporter says

(Newser) - Despite the advances made by Libyan rebels yesterday, Tripoli continues to see heavy fighting—and a BBC convoy recently found itself in the middle of the violence. Reporter Rupert Wingfield-Hayes was accompanying rebels into the city center when, he says, “we came under ambush … pro-Gadhafi forces drove out...

Reports: Gadhafi Security Surrenders, Sons Captured

Euphoric rebels meet little resistance as they enter Tripoli

(Newser) - As the Libya endgame continues, news is breaking quickly: A rebel leader tells the AP Seif al-Islam Gadhafi has been arrested, and Reuters reports that Moammar Gadhafi's government is ready to negotiate with rebels. Earlier reports on Twitter stated that both of Gadhafi's sons had been captured (his...

Assad to World: Stay Out, We're Crushing Resistance

In rare TV appearance, Syrian President says regime is stable

(Newser) - Syrian President Bashar Assad said today his regime is in no danger of collapse and warned against any foreign military intervention in his country as the regime tries to crush a 5-month-old popular uprising. In his fourth public appearance since the revolt against his family's 40-year rule erupted in...

Syria Military Operations Have Ended: Assad

But activists say 18 were killed yesterday, shooting continues

(Newser) - Syrian President Bashar Assad told the United Nations chief that military operations in his country have ended, even as activists said today that security forces shot dead 18 people nationwide and intense shooting erupted in the flashpoint city of Latakia. In New York, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke to Assad...

Judge Postpones Mubarak Trial, Halts TV Coverage

Some say move will ensure calmer environment; others denounce it

(Newser) - Hosni Mubarak's trial has been adjourned for three weeks, and when it resumes Sept. 5, the hearings will no longer be televised. The judge ordered the live airings halted "in the interest of the public," but some opponents of the former Egyptian president were unhappy with the...

In Dramatic Advance, Libya Rebels Re-Enter Zawiya

Rebels battle Gadhafi loyalists in key city

(Newser) - Libyan rebels in pickup trucks mounted with weapons and troops loyal to Moammar Gadhafi battled in the streets of Zawiya today, a day after opposition forces pushed from the western mountains into the strategic city in their most dramatic advance in months. Pro-Gadhafi snipers shot at rebels from an overpass...

Syrian Death Toll Rises Above 2K

Other nations ramp up pressure on government

(Newser) - More than 2,050 people have been killed in Syria since the uprising began, according to the Syrian Observatory, and the army is continuing its crackdown on protesters. At least five civilians, including two children, were killed today around Hama, activists tell al-Jazeera . Also today, two civilian deaths were reported...

Clash Between Rival Libya Rebel Factions Kills 4

Six wounded in Benghazi fight

(Newser) - Clashes between rival factions of the Libyan rebels killed four people today in the opposition stronghold of Benghazi, deepening the worst crisis so far for the movement after its chief military commander was killed , possibly by fighters from his own side. One group of rebels overran the base of another...

Syria Kills 62 in Pre-Ramadan Crackdown

Mostly in city of Hama

(Newser) - The Syrian army raided cities across the country before dawn today, killing at least 62 people—most of them in the flashpoint city of Hama where a barrage of shelling and gunfire left bodies scattered in the streets, activists and residents said. The government is escalating its crackdown ahead of...

Libya Rebels Advance on All Fronts

They are within 80 miles of one of Gadhafi's strongholds

(Newser) - After months of an apparent stalemate, the Libyan rebels have made significant progress in recent weeks, and are now within reach of Moammar Gadhafi's southern stronghold. Sebha, full of Gadhafi loyalists and once thought to be impenetrable, is an important hub for channeling supplies to the north and is...

1K Injured in Egypt as Rocks, Molotov Cocktails Fly

Protesters say they want to break into, burn Interior Ministry

(Newser) - Protests raged for a second day in Cairo yesterday, leaving more than 1,000 people injured—though most only lightly, according to the Egyptian health ministry. Protesters gathered outside the Interior Ministry, hurling rocks and Molotov cocktails as police shot tear gas from behind barricades, the LA Times reports. “...

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