The Great Arab Revolt II

The modern and imposing landmark that had become the symbol of the opposition in Bahrain was demolished today by the government.

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The nighttime cries of dissent went out from the rooftops shortly after the text messages came through. For nearly 15 minutes, just as the messages exhorted, they called out to the sky: "God is great!" as soldiers and police took hold of the streets below.

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THE crackdown on Yemen's growing opposition movement is getting much nastier. On Friday snipers hidden on rooftops opened fire on the crowds gathered for prayers outside Sana'a University. At least 39 were killed and around 200 injured, according to doctors talking to the BBC. Scenes of chaos were reported at the makeshift hospital that the demonstrators have set up within their camp.

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The Yemeni government escalated its efforts to stop mass protests calling for the president’s ouster on Tuesday, with soldiers firing rubber bullets and tear gas at students camped at a university in the capital in a raid that left at least 98 people wounded, officials said.

The army stormed the Sanaa University campus hours after thousands of inmates rioted at the central prison in the capital, taking a dozen guards hostage and calling for President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down. At least one prisoner was killed and 80 people were wounded as the guards fought to control the situation, police said

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Reports from Deraa, near the border with Jordan, say at least four people were killed and hundreds more injured in a crackdown by security forces.

Demonstrations were also held in Damascus and in other towns, answering a call made on a social network site for a so-called “Day of Dignity.” The demand is for more freedom and democracy.

Syria’s ruling elite has indicated a belief that it is immune from uprisings sweeping the Arab world, citing economic liberalisation and a hardline against Israel. Latest events may prove it wrong.

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"“It’s a priority for the US administration to work with partners in the Gulf region against the concern over the behavior of Iran,” she said. Commenting on the deployment of troops from the Peninsula Shield Force in the Kingdom of Bahrain in the wake of violent protests, Clinton said it was a sovereign right for Bahrain to seek help from GCC member states under the joint defense treaty they had signed."

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Several protesters were arrested in Saudi Arabia on Sunday at a demonstration demanding the release of thousands of prisoners, held captive for years without trial.

They were among dozens of men and women who tried to push their way into Riyadh's interior ministry building, which was fortified with up to 2,000 special forces and 200 police vehicles, according to the Associated Press news agency

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Yemen's ambassador to the United Nations has resigned over the killing of 52 protesters calling for the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

"Abdullah Alsaidi has submitted his resignation to protest at the use of violence against demonstrators," a Yemeni foreign ministry official said on Sunday.

The move comes as Yemen's most powerful tribal confederation called on Saleh to step down.

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Bahrain's two main hospitals remain surrounded by masked soldiers despite demands from America that the kingdom must ease its violent crackdown on demonstrators and the medical workers treating them...

Relatives of another victim, IT technician Ahmed Farhan, said they saw him being executed as he lay prostrate on a street in the suburb of Sitra.

"They killed him in cold blood," said Ali Hassan Ali, a physical education teacher. "I was standing near him when he was shot. He fell, they chased us away and shot him in the head at point-blank rage with a bird-shot gun."

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Momentum is building for the opposition. The demonstrations are getting bigger with each day. They started out gathering between 100 to 300. Today’s demonstration was well over 1,000 in Deraa. The New York Times is reporting that 20,000 joined the funeral march in Deraa. The killing of four in Deraa is new. Many Syrians claim that this is the first time President Assad has drawn blood with the shooting of demonstrators. The Kurdish intifada of 2004 in the Jazeera ended with the death of many but that occurred following the successful constitutional referendum in Iraq and was blamed on external factors. To many Syrians, this time seems different

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