14 anti-government protesters dead in Libya

Demonstrators take to the streets against Gadhafi in Day of Rage, sparring with loyalists counter protests; accurate casualty reports hard to come by due to media blackouts.

At least 14 Libyan demonstrators were reported to have been killed in clashes with pro-government forces Thursday, as protesters seeking to oust longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi defied a crackdown and took to the streets of four cities for what activists have dubbed a day of rage.

The Human Rights Watch organization said Libyan authorities had also detained 14 activists, writers and protesters who had been preparing the anti-government protests. The group called upon Libya to free everyone detained for their role in anti-government protests.

Supporters chant slogans towards Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi during a ceremony marking the birth of Prophet Mohammad in Tripoli February 13, 2011.


Photo by: Reuters


Libya has been tightly controlled for over 40 years by Gadhafi-- who is now Africa's longest-serving leader - but the oil exporter has felt the ripples from the overthrow of long-standing leaders in its neighbors Egypt and Tunisia.

An opposition website and an anti-Gadhafi activist said unrest broke out during marches in four Libyan cities Thursday. Organizers were using social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to call for nationwide demonstrations. "Today the Libyans broke the barrier or fear, it is a new dawn," said Faiz Jibril, an opposition leader in exile.

Gadhafi's government has moved quickly to try to stop Libyans from joining the wave of uprisings in the Middle East that have ousted the leaders of Egypt and Tunisia. It has proposed the doubling of government employees' salaries and released 110 suspected Islamic militants who oppose him - tactics similar to those adopted by other Arab regimes facing recent mass protests.

Witnesses in the capital said many government supporters were raising Libyan flags from their cars and chanting slogans in favor of Gadhafi. The official news agency JANA also reported that thousands of Gadhafi's supporters planned a rally later on Thursday in Tripoli, as well as demonstrations in other cities, to express unity with Gadhafi.

They said it was otherwise business as usual in the capital and stores remained open. On Omar al-Mokhtar street, Tripoli's main thoroughfare, traffic was moving as normal, banks and shops were open and there was no increased security presence.

Protests have already turned violent

Opposition website Libya Al-Youm said four protesters were slain by snipers from the Internal Security Forces in the eastern city of Beyida, which had protests Wednesday and Thursday. It's not clear when the protesters were killed. The website also said there was a demonstration Thursday in Benghazi, Libya's second-Largest city.

Switzerland-based Libyan activist Fathi al-Warfali said 11 protesters were killed in Beyida on Wednesday night, and scores were wounded.

Al-Warfali, head of the Libyan Committee for Truth and Justice, said two more people were killed in another city, Zentana, on Thursday while one protester was killed in Rijban, a town about 120 kilometers southwest of Tripoli.

A video provided by al-Warfali of the scene in Zentana showed marchers chanting and holding a banner that read "Down with Gadhafi. Down with the regime."

The Libyan government maintains tight control over the media and the reports couldn't be independently confirmed. Late on Wednesday evening, it was impossible to contact witnesses in Benghazi because telephone connections to the city appeared to be out of order.

Gadhafi was quoted as saying on Wednesday that "revolutionaries" would prevail, although he did not mention the unrest. "Down with the enemies, down with them everywhere," the BBC quoted Gadhafi as saying. "The puppets of the USA, the puppets of Zionism are falling."

Though some Libyans complain about unemployment, inequality and limits on political freedoms, analysts say an Egypt-style revolt is unlikely because the government can use oil revenues to smooth over most social problems.

Libya accounts for about 2 percent of the world's crude exports. Companies including Shell, BP and Eni have invested billions of dollars in tapping its oil fields, home to the largest proven reserves in Africa.

yemen - AP - February 16 2011
   
Supporters of the Yemeni government shout slogans as they try to enter Sanaa University where anti-government protestors gather, in Sanaa, Yemen, February 16, 2011.


Photo by: A