Mission Accomplished: Mystery Anti-Muslim Film Sows Violence Around World

If the intent of whoever was behind the mystery film was to disrupt US diplomatic missions around the world, mission accomplished.

The overdubbed video clips have taken on a life of their own and it's no longer about the video, but anger directed at the US for no reason other than it's the in-thing to do in places like Tunisia and Egypt. At a time when the economic conditions in those countries isn't improving after regime change, protesting against the US (and throw in the anti-Israel sentiments expressed in some) is a safe way to divert attention away from the inability to improve the economic conditions as fast as everyone wants.

Blaming the US is better than trying to create jobs in those countries. Claiming that the US engaged in blasphemy or somehow supports blasphemy is easier than trying to understand that free speech is a universal right and includes the right to say things that other groups might not like or want to hear or see, but it doesn't give anyone the right to blow stuff up or riot and destroy property. Free exercise of religion means not imposing your religious views on others, or other nations for that matter.

Those behind the film are agent provocateurs who sought to sow discord and create conflict. They achieved those goals, and now the US and those regimes in the Middle East and elsewhere these protests/riots are going on have to deal with the fallout.

One has to also wonder who benefits from the repercussions of these protests/riots/attacks. Iran definitely comes to mind, as do the regimes that replaced longstanding brutal regimes that did not tolerate dissent. This is something that has to be explored at greater depth.

Riots and protests are spreading to other countries, and the list now includes Tunisia, Lebanon (which happens to be where Pope Benedict is visiting on a diplomatic trip), Yemen, Bangladesh, and the German embassy in Khartoum Sudan has been torched. Jordan has also seen protests. Here's a map showing where those protests are underway.

But you know who hasn't seen the film or the clips - most of those protesting. It's a ginned up controversy and the film's creators/backers are still not fully known. And what's known about those involved thus far indicate that the producer was a convicted criminal and a shady character - a grifter being a most charitable term, while the director was incompetent and may not have known the plot/dialogue and the actors didn't know what they were doing or that the film was overdubbed afterwards to completely change the meaning and context of the scenes.

This situation smells, make that reeks, of the trajectory followed in the cartoon jihad that cost more than 100 lives across the world and resulted in embassies of several countries being attacked.

Once again, we have an obscure publication that gets picked up and within days is turned into a rallying cry for rioting and protests by Islamist leaders decrying the blasphemous acts and portrayals - urging death to those involved. Instead of the targets being embassies of the Danes, the nation of the Jyllands Posten, which published the cartoons originally, it's US diplomatic facilities are being targeted (and also Germany). In some instances, it appears that local governments are backing protests, while others - as in Libya - the government is actively trying to block the attacks/protests.

It may also be useful to try and distinguish between the terror attack that killed Ambassador Stevens and three other Americans in Libya and the protests/riots in Egypt and elsewhere. The attack in Libya appears to have been a preplanned attack to coincide with 9/11, while the protests elsewhere appear to be more closely related to the outrage over the mystery film. The film outrage may have spurred protests in Libya as well that were exploited by the attackers, but the scenario has blurred together into one mess that will take quite some time to sort out.

Clashes Erupt in Tunisia Following Election Disqualifications

Clashes flared anew after the independent elections commission disqualified candidates that had been declared winners. That's a black mark on what had been largely peaceful and successful elections.

Violence broke out Thursday night in the city and province of Sidi Bouzid over election disqualifications. On Friday, protesters again clashed with security forces, who used tear gas to disperse the crowd, according to the state news agency Tunisie Afrique Presse.

Authorities imposed a curfew in Sidi Bouzid between 7 p.m. and 5 a.m. following the clashes, state media said.

The clashes erupted after independent commission disqualified some candidates for seats that had been won by the People's Petition, which is led by Hachemi Hamdi.

Hamdi owns a satellite television station based in London.

Tunisia's election commission Thursday had declared the moderate Islamist Ennahda party the winner of the weekend poll, taking 90 of 217 seats in an assembly that will write a new constitution, state media reported.

The party won 41.5% of the vote while its nearest rival, the secularist Congress for the Republic, won 30 seats, according to the Tunis-Afrique Presse.

The People's Petition party won 19 seats despite the invalidation based on financial irregularities. Note too that the People's Petition is closely aligned with the ousted regime of Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali. The violence is being carried out by those who supported the ousted regime and whose votes are being disqualified by the independent commission setting up a new government.

Separating itself from other Islamist parties in the Middle East, Ennahda claims that it would protect womens' rights.

Since its victory in Sunday's vote, Ennahda has sought to reassure secularists and investors, nervous about the prospect of Islamists holding power in one of the Arab world's most liberal countries, by saying it would not ban alcohol, stop tourists wearing bikinis on the beaches or impose Islamic banking.

But despite the reassurances, Ennahda's victory is causing concern in some parts of Tunisia, who fear the party could later change its policies, our correspondent says.

Ennahda leader Rachid Ghannouchi has previously compared his party's views to Turkey's government, but that's a worrisome situation given that the Turkish government under Erdogan has been backsliding on human rights and freedoms while Islamist positions are increasingly being adopted.

However, the most pressing issue for Tunisians is the awful economic conditions which precipitated the ousting of Ben Ali. There, Ennahda is calling for tax reform and stock sales to spur the economy.

The election results break down as follows for the 217 seat Parliament:
Ennahda won 90 seats.
Two left-leaning parties won second and third place: the Congress for the Republic (CPR) obtaining 30 seats, and al-Takatol 21 seats.
In fourth place was the People's Petition, with 19 seats.

Tunisia Counts Votes From Historic Elections

Tunisia, the first of the Arab countries to overthrow longtime dictators, despots, and autocrats, carried off the first free election since they deposed Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. They're counting the votes and it would appear that there was huge turnout for the elections. Observers think that there was 90% turnout, and that includes a large diaspora vote.

Most forecasts point to the Ennahda party emerging with the biggest share of the vote, an outcome that worries secularists and could be replicated in other Arab states when they hold their own post-Arab Spring elections.

Tunisian radio read out voting figures obtained from districts in the northern town of Beja and other areas that showed Ennahda in the lead, with the center-left Congress for the Republic Party (CRP) also doing well.

Ennahda said its own polling suggested the same. Parties are allowed to have representatives present during the counting process. Partial results are expected later Monday and final results Tuesday.

"The results are very good for Ennahda. We don't want to give details but it's clear that Ennahda has enjoyed a level of success that in some cases equals the results of the voting abroad," an Ennahda official said.

Ennahda, citing its own, unofficial tally from votes cast by the large Tunisian diaspora before Sunday's election, said there were indications it had won half the vote abroad.

"Ennahda was first in all the foreign polling stations," its campaign manager, Abdelhamid Jlazzi, told a gathering of party workers. "We got more than 50 percent."

The 217-seat assembly Tunisians are electing will sit for one year, re-write the constitution, choose a new interim government and set dates for parliamentary and presidential elections.

So who exactly is the Ennahda party or the CRP? Ennahda considers itself to be a moderate Islamist party and the CRP is a center-left party that has significant support.

Ennahda has attempted to show that it is a modern and moderate Islamic party.

n all three countries, Islamic groups have proven to be most organized, topping opinion polls and setting the political agenda, but have also taken pains to present themselves as progressive and democratic. Ennahda is running a female candidate who wears the head covering favored by Islamists as its candidate in the capital of Tunis and its leaders have repeated stressed its fealty to democracy.

“All the values of democracy and modernity are respected by Ennahda. We are a party that can find a balance between modernity and Islam,” its leader, Rachid Ghannouchi, told Reuters in an interview on Monday, rejecting critics’ accusations that the party’s moderation is a cover for extremist views.

These elections are only the beginning of a political process to form a new constitution and political process. I would expect significant political maneuverings to put in religious protections for Muslims and non Muslims, and even some attempts to marry some Islamic law to democratic ideals, but the religious components will take a back seat to the real issue facing the Tunisian government - improving the economic situation for millions of Tunisians who overthrew Ben Ali because the government was unresponsive to the dire economic conditions. The government will have to focus on improving economic conditions and if it fails to put a political solution in place that generates economic growth and economic opportunities for advancement, this new government will find itself voted (or thrown) out of office.

UPDATE:
It appears that Ennahda has won at least 30% of the votes and is going to be in a position to form the new government along with several liberal-leaning groups.

The party, Ennahda, won at least 30 percent of the votes cast on Sunday, and party officials told a news conference the party had come out ahead in nearly every voting district. Ali Laredi, a top official of the party, said it expected to receive possibly more than 50 percent when the final results are tallied.

Calling his party “the most modernist” Islamic political movement in the Arab world — meaning the most committed to principles of democracy and pluralism — Mr. Laredi predicted that it would now “lead the way” for others around the region.

Ennahda officials were already beginning discussions to form a unity government with the four or five other more liberal parties that were expected to get representation in the constituent assembly, which is to draft the constitution.

Millions of Tunisians cast votes on Sunday in the election, which was widely watched as the possible pioneer for votes in Egypt and Libya, where longtime autocrats were felled by uprisings energized by the Tunisia revolution.

Gunfire Again Reported in Tripoli as Khadafi Continues Holding On

Friday in Libya has given way to yet more protests and reports of fighting, including gunfire in Tripoli, which is Mumar Khadafi's last bastion.

Libyan security forces used tear gas to disperse protesters in the nation's capital Friday, and gunshots were heard amid the chaos, according to reporters at the scene.

As Friday prayers let out, the protesters began marching from mosques, calling for Gadhafi's ouster. Many streamed out of the Murad Agha mosque in the Tajoura district, chanting "the people want to bring the regime down."

The security forces fired at least five canisters of tear gas at the crowd of around 1,500 protesters in Tajoura. The crowd briefly scattered, but rejoined to continue their march, according to an Associated Press reporter at the scene.

Before the marches, pro-Gadhafi forces set up checkpoints in the neighborhood. Last week, similar protests were met by a brutal crackdown, when militiamen opened fire on demonstrators moments after they began their marches.

Pro Khadafi loyalists continue to fire upon opposition groups, and the body count continues rising.


Anderson Cooper debunks Khadafi's nonsensical claims that the Libyan youth were being given hallucinogenic drugs by the US or al Qaeda to encourage an uprising against what Khadafi calls a popular regime.



Among the drugs claimed were involved is a pain killer whose primary side effects are drowsiness and constipation. That's not exactly the kind of drug one would expect rebel groups to be dispensing to encourage an uprising.

Khadafi is also fond of claiming that al Qaeda has no presence in Libya, but yet he and his flacks have repeatedly claimed that al Qaeda was behind the transportation and distribution of these drugs to coffee houses and other locations in the country to foment an uprising.

Meanwhile, President Obama has come out with his strongest statements to date on Libya, and essentially calls the Khadafi government illegitimate and authorized an airlift to assist those fleeing the country. He names Tunisia and Egypt as being particularly helpful in assisting those fleeing, even as those two countries are busy trying to formulate new governments after their own revolutions.



USAID teams have been sent to the Libyan border in Egypt and Tunisia to assist with the refugee problem.

Khadafi loyalists bombed yet another town in the hopes of staving off the rebel groups from taking still more territory.

The latest air strike, early Friday, targeted a military base on the edge of Ajdabiya, a strategic crossroads, rebels said.

There were no casualties or damage in the bombing, which came as hundreds of opposition volunteers rushed to defend their frontline in the nearby oil port of Brega.

At the same time, opposition forces also headed along the main coastal road out of Uqayla, a small village about 175 miles (280 kilometres) from the main rebel headquarters in Benghazi, Libya's second city.

An AFP reporter about five miles west of Uqayla saw about six pick-up trucks mounted with heavy machine guns heading still further west.

A patchwork coalition of rebels controls eastern Libya and some towns in the west following a revolt that started on February 15, but Kadhafi retains his grip on the capital Tripoli and parts of the west.

Kadhafi's son Seif Al-Islam told Britain's Sky News the air strikes were designed only to scare the rebels rather than cause damage, amid reports pilots reluctant to bomb their compatriots were deliberately missing their targets.

"This is the oil and gas hub of Libya," he said, vowing the regime would do all in its power to recapture Brega.

UPDATE:
More reports of live ammunition being used to disrupt the protests by pro-Khadafi loyalists.

Protests and Threats

The protests continue in Iran, Yemen, and even Bahrain, along with Egypt and Algeria. Two people were killed in the Bahrain protests, and members of the Parliament have walked out.

Two protesters have died in clashes with Bahraini police, sparking angry calls from young cyber-activists for regime change and a walkout of parliament by Bahrain's main Shiite opposition bloc.

The events prompted King Hamad to express sorrow for the deaths, announce a ministerial probe and pledge to press ahead with reforms, in an address to the tiny Gulf state facing Iran across the Gulf that is ruled by his Sunni family.

The Islamic National Accord Association which has 18 seats in the 40-member house earlier announced it had "suspended its membership" in parliament over the killings of the Shiite demonstrators.

The decision came because of "the deterioration in security and the negative and brutal way in which (authorities) dealt with the protesters, killing two of them," bloc member MP Khalil al-Marzooq said.

Fadel Salman Matrouk was shot dead in front of a hospital on Tuesday where mourners gathered for the funeral of Ali Msheymah who died of his wounds after police dispersed a protest in a village east of Manama on Monday, he said.

In Iran, the regime is calling for the heads of opposition leaders - they want them executed.



The members of Parliament calling for the blood of members of the opposition, including former President Rafsanjani aren't doing so unless they have the blessings of the mullahs and IRGC, and that's on top of the fact several political prisoners are presumed to have been executed by the regime:

Members of the Iranian parliament issued fiery chants against opposition leaders and former presidential candidates Mehdi Karrubi and Mir Hossein Moussavi.

Press TV aired video Tuesday of lawmakers chanting "Moussavi, Karrubi ... execute them."

Lawmakers also named former President Mohammad Khatami in some of the death chants.

The calls for the leaders' executions come after a particularly deadly month in Iran. At least 66 people were executed in January, according to Iranian media reports. Most of the executions were reportedly carried out for drug offenses, although at least three involved political prisoners, a U.N. statement said.

The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood is planning a political party, which is sure to raise eyebrows over their ultimate intentions, but forming a political party is preferable to a hostile takeover and imposing their theocratic will over that of the population. Protests there continue, because of the ongoing economic concerns that helped spark the revolution/coup d'etat.

The Algerian PM thinks that the protesters are a small minority that is expressing discontent. I think he's deluding himself if he thinks that a small percentage of his countrymen are satisfied with conditions and he's likely to fall into the same trap that Mubarak did just days ago.

UPDATE:
Video from the Bahraini protests:

The Domino Effect Revisited

After the fall of Tunisia's Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, speculation ran rampant as to whether the revolution that overthrew Ben Ali would spread throughout Africa and the Middle East because the conditions, complaints, and socio-economic situations are pervasive throughout the region.

Special concern was focused on Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and even Iran.

The concern about Egypt was especially well placed, and the events over the past three weeks, up to and including the news that the military sent Hosni Mubarak packing into the sunset this morning show that there may be something to the domino effect (or as I put it - a spillover effect).

While the focus has long been on the Middle Eastern regimes, there's a notable lack of democratic regimes in Africa, and countries South of Egypt and Tunisia may be looking at Tunisia and Egypt as a model for their own stand against autocratic, kleptocratic, and otherwise totalitarian regimes. Africans are going to take a good long look at the events of the past two months as a model for their own political discontent.

That includes some of the usual suspects, like Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, and Libya's Mumar Khadafi. In fact, Libya's between a literal rock and hard place as it is sandwiched between Tunisia and Egypt and Khadafi has been stifling the country's development for 41 years.

So, while any number of regimes are necessarily worried about the people rising up against them, including Syria, Bahrain has said that they don't see a domino effect. I'm sure that Mubarak was thinking the same thing up to and including last night's speech - and the abrupt change in government this morning that sent him packing.

If anyone thinks that there can't or wont be a spillover effect, or a domino effect through the region clearly hasn't been paying attention. Jordan and Syria have been trying to take steps to avert a regime change, and Iran's mullahs have already weathered one attempt (and another attempt is likely to receive renewed vigor in light of events in Cairo).

Iran's regime survived the threat posed by the opposition as led by Mirhussein Mousavi because their secret police, the IRGC, and paramilitary force (Basij) wasn't constrained in the way that the Egyptian army was. The Basij was merciless in its oppression and the crackdown was harsh and thorough to the point that it's debatable whether the opposition could attempt another uprising to demonstrate against the Islamist regime in charge.

But other countries in the region aren't in that kind of position. Their regimes aren't nearly as stable or confident in their security forces to quell potential demonstrations. Their leaders aren't as willing to modernize and impose changes necessary to improve the sociopolitical situation, and that is going to lead to more regimes being contested openly.

Mubarak's Regime Staring at the Precipice

Today might mark the beginning of the end of Hosni Mubarak's 30-year run has ruler of Egypt.

The latest news suggests that the military is not suppressing the demonstrations and enforcing the curfew, Egyptian elites are bugging out of the country, and the Parliament is about to make an announcement in a short time:

2122: Egyptian TV cites parliamentary speaker as saying "an important matter will be announced in a short time".

I'm guessing the answer will not involve Hosni Mubarak as the Egypt's leader going forward.

My expectation is that the military will be involved in selecting the next leader of Egypt, perhaps setting up a caretaker government to allow for elections, but that is anything but a given.

Mubarak has apparently lost the support of the military, which is a major reason why events are going against him in a big way. He clearly tried to pull a page from the Iran playbook, including shutting down the Internet, but couldn't pull it off - not when he lacked sufficient support among the military. Iran's mullahs had support of the IRGC and Basij, and that was a huge difference in Iran's regime being able to outlast the protests and crush them in the end.

We've yet to see how the endgame will play out, but we'll probably know a whole lot more in the coming hours as to who will run Egypt in coming days, but even then, that's not a sign of who will govern in the weeks and months ahead, particularly if the Tunisian experience is a guide. After sending Ben Ali into exile, the Tunisian Prime Minister Ghannouchi took the helm, and the protests continued because he was seen as nothing more than a henchman to Ben Ali. Even after further concessions, the protests continue in Tunisia demanding a complete evisceration of the government to eliminate the last remnants of the Ben Ali regime.

UPDATE:
For the first time since the violent protests broke out in Egypt, Hosni Mubarak took to the airwaves. He's calling for the protests to come to an end and claims that it is part of a plot to destabilize and overthrow his government. However, he also has called for his entire cabinet to resign over their failed policies.

In the end, this boils down to an attempt for Mubarak to continue his rule while offering platitudes to the protesters. Don't expect these moves to sit well with the protesters who will demand further concessions from the government, which still answers to Mubarak. The fact that Mubarak is making even these moves shows that he's seriously concerned about staying in power and is grasping at straws as to what will placate the protesters. He's going to find out real quick that the only thing that will do so is his removal from office.

After trying the Iran playbook, and finding no success, he's now trying to take a page from the Tunisian playbook, and that isn't any more successful.

Riots Continue In Egypt, Lebanon and Tunisia As Crackdown Commences

Video from Egypt shows demonstrators that have been bloodied and riot troops firing off tear gas while water cannons spray the protesters to little effect.



Up to 200 demonstrators have been arrested in Egypt, and Twitter has apparently been shut down by the Egyptian government to quell the protests.

"The Egyptian government has an important opportunity to be responsive to the aspirations of the Egyptian people and pursue political, economic and social reforms that can improve their lives and help Egypt prosper," a White House statement said.

Events in the region were a reminder that "all people yearn for certain things," such as free speech, a say in government and the rule of law, the White House added.

Twitter, the Internet messaging service that has been one of the main methods used by demonstrators to organize, said it had been blocked in Egypt. In a message, the company wrote: "We believe that the open exchange of info & views benefits societies & helps govts better connect w/ their people."

Thousands of demonstrators had earlier said they planned to stay out in Tahrir square until the government fell. Some protesters and police shared food and chatted on Tuesday evening after a day of protests that closed many Cairo roads to traffic.

Demonstrators tore up pictures of the president and his son, Gamal, who many Egyptians say is being groomed for office. Both Gamal and his father deny any such plan.

'Day of wrath'
"Tomorrow, don't go to work. Don't go to college. We will all go down to the streets and stand hand in hand for you our Egypt. We will be millions," wrote one activist on a group on Facebook, which has been a key tool mobilizing demonstrators.

Tuesday was a national holiday and ministries were closed. A government source said ministers had been told to ensure staff returned to work on Wednesday and did not join protests.

Tahrir Square in Cairo is the epicenter for the protests, and photos continue to show significant crowds despite riot police efforts to disperse the crowds. In the end, the riot police brought out the rubber bullets, tear gas, and water cannons, and several people were killed, including one police officer:

After hours of struggling to disperse the thousands of defiant protesters who had congregated in Tahrir Square since midday, security forces resorted to firing rubber bullets, tear gas canisters and water cannons just after midnight.

According to the Front to Defend Egypt Protestors yesterday’s protests accross the country left “three dead in Suez, tens injured and hundreds arrested.” They also said that injured protesters who sought medical attention in the hospital were questioned. Another protester from Suez died from his injuries Wednesday morning.

Yesterday Egypt witnessed nationwide protests with the largest taking place in Tahrir (Liberation) Square in the centre of the city where thousands of protesters gathered from around 3:00 pm. Most of those who congregated in Tahrir Square had marched there from other protests in the city taking place in Shubra, Dokki, Imbaba and Mohandeseen.

Nearly half of Egyptians live under the poverty line, which is defined as $2 a day.

The situation in Lebanon is not much better, as Hizbullah has all but completed its takeover of the government to the detriment of all Lebanese. The terror group's takeover is directly related to thwarting efforts to investigate and name the assassins involved in the assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, and Hizbullah's thugs were expected to take top billing alongside Syrian and possibly Iranian officials. It's doing just enough to stake its claim to power, but not enough to get other countries to lift an eyebrow.

The protests and riots have ebbed for the moment, but don't expect that situation to last, particularly in coming weeks as the Hariri tribunal works towards announcing the indictments.

UPDATE:
Tunisia is now seeking Interpol's assistance in arresting and extraditing ousted thug Ben Ali to face charges of looting the country's treasury. He's hunkered down in Saudi Arabia, so it isn't clear whether Tunisia's pleas will be heeded:

Tunisia has asked Interpol to help arrest ousted president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and his family so they can be tried for theft and currency offences, the justice minister said on Wednesday.

The French-based international police organization has been asked to bring to justice Ben Ali, his wife Leila Trabelsi and other family members who have fled the country, Lazhar Karoui Chebbi told a news conference.

Ben Ali went to Saudi Arabia this month after weeks of violent protests against poverty, repression and corruption. He amassed vast riches during his 23 years in power, with his family controlling many of Tunisia's biggest companies.

Meanwhile, Algeria is boosting its food imports to head off the possibility of riots that led to Ben Ali's exit and ongoing problems in Egypt. Food riots formed the underlying basis of the Tunisian uprising against Ben Ali, so this shouldn't be an unexpected move. Whether it works remains to be seen.

The Spillover Effect

After the demonstrations and riots in Tunisia forced Zine El Abidine Ben Ali into exile, demonstrations sprang up in several other corners of the Middle East where economic conditions are a mess and the sociopolitical situation is similar (autocratic regimes with little to no representation and repression of opposition). The most serious of these demonstrations is occuring in Egypt, where thouands of protesters continue clashing with police.

Protests by thousands of anti-government demonstrators in Egypt's capital are turning violent with police firing tear gas and a water canon to disperse the crowds.

Protesters attacked the water canon truck, opening the driver's door and ordering him out of the vehicle.

Police responded by beating protesters with batons as they tried to break cordons to join the main downtown demonstrators.

Protesters massed Tuesday at several locations in the Egyptian capital on what is being called the "Day of Rage," chanting against President Hosni Mubarak and calling for an end to poverty in the first Tunisian-inspired protest in the country.

Other reports said the protests were being called the "Day of Revolution."

The demonstrators chanted, "Long Live a Free Tunisia" and "Down with Hosni Mubarak."

The Muslim Brotherhood has said that it wouldn't participate in the demonstrations, but tens of thousands of people have still turned out to oppose Mubarak. Mubarak's security apparatus is seen as being more entrenched and effective than Tunisia's, but then again, Egypt was viewed as being more volatile than Tunisia, before the protests sent Ben Ali into exile. Five Arab regimes are ripe for demonstrations and riots that could lead to the overthrow of the governments, including Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Libya and Sudan, according to Foreign Policy - and much of the unrest in these countries stems from lack of economic opportunities and food shortages.

Speaking of the Tunisians, the head of the Tunisian military said that the military would not stand for a political vacuum, and that they would not allow for an overthrow of the interim government, which is stocked with many Ben Ali holdovers and allies:



Yemen has released political activists in the wake of protests, in the hopes of thwarting demonstrations along the lines of those seen in Tunisia and Egypt.


Protesters continue engaging in self-immolation to spread their message, following in the footsteps of the unemployed Tunisian whose immolation sparked the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia.

In Egypt, at least six cases of self-immolation have been reported, including a man arrested last Thursday while trying to set himself on fire outside the Egyptian parliament in downtown Cairo. Over the weekend, a Moroccan man set himself on fire in Casablanca as did a Mauritanian man who set himself on fire and died in hospital on Saturday. In Algeria, four men have reportedly set themselves on fire. Even in Saudi Arabia, whose people are insulated from poverty and inflation by oil wealth, a man in his 60s set himself on fire in the town of Samitah. He died in hospital on Sunday.

Even as cities across the region are struck by mass demonstrations, the images of people committing suicide by setting themselves afire may be doing more than anything else to spread protests across the Arab world, said Michael Biggs, a lecturer in sociology at Oxford University, who has studied the phenomenon of self-immolation.

“It’s very clear that death of Bouazizi had major political impact, and the cost for him was very high, but the political benefit seems to be high as well,” Biggs told The Media Line. “It’s the ultimate altruistic act. It shows that some people care enough about political change that they think it’s worth making that terrible sacrifice.”

UPDATE:
Arab regimes fear a bread intifada - an uprising against their regimes over a lack of basic rations (and higher food costs). (HT: obdicut at LGF)

UPDATE:
Video from the demonstrations via the BBC - remarkable scenes as protests were far larger than the security forces thought would take place.

UPDATE:
More video of the protesters taking on security forces, including thwarting a water cannon vehicle:


The Muslim Brotherhood is in a position to take advantage of the situation if Mubarak loses control and his security forces can't contain the protests. They are very well coordinated and well entrenched despite efforts by Mubarak to eliminate the group.

It would be a dark day for Egypt if the Brotherhood rises to power as a result of these demonstrations despite how awful Mubarak has been for the Egyptians.

UPDATE:
The protesters have marched on the Egyptian Parliament building and there are reports that at least two of the protesters have been killed in skirmishes with security forces in Egypt.

Palestinian Authority Blocks West Bank Rally Supporting Tunisian Protests

You really can't make this stuff up. The Palestinian Authority, which in the West Bank is essentially Fatah, has no interest in ceding power to anyone, whether it is Hamas, or allowing demonstrations that might raise awareness about the corruption and failures of Palestinian leadership to accomplish anything since they were given civil administrative control over much of the West Bank.

The PA has banned demonstrations supporting the Tunisian overthrow of the odious Ben Ali government and demands for a house-cleaning of those allied with Ben Ali.

The Palestinian Authority refused to grant permission for a rally to celebrate the overthrow of Tunisia’s authoritarian president on Wednesday in Ramallah, the administrative capital of the West Bank.

The French newspaper Le Monde reported that a few dozen Palestinians who defied the ban arrived in the square in Ramallah where the rally was to take place only to find that they were outnumbered by members of the ruling Fatah party, who chose the same time and place to stage a demonstration in support of Palestinians held in Israeli jails.

According to the Palestinian Maan news agency, “It was not clear whose demonstration was planned first.”

A correspondent for Le Monde, Benjamin Barthe, observed that a police cordon around the square and “the presence among the demonstrators of many mukhabarat (secret police) officers left little doubt about the Palestinian Authority’s intention to prevent any expression of solidarity with the ‘jasmine revolution’ ” in Tunisia, which led the president, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, to flee into exile.

The reporter added that just as one young Palestinian began to wave a Tunisian flag, an officer grabbed it, on the grounds that it was disturbing the demonstration in honor of the prisoners. .

Omar Barghouti, a leading Palestinian human rights activist who was present at the thwarted celebration, told the French newspaper: “It’s unbelievable. … The police are in the process of confirming the charge that the Palestinian Authority is on the side of Ben Ali and that it also fears the people and the street.”

The Palestinian security forces have banned all displays of the Tunisian flag or anything that can reference the Jasmine uprising.

This goes back to what I've been saying about the lessons learned from the Tunisian uprising and overthrow of Ben Ali. Middle Eastern regimes and despots have learned that tolerance of demonstrators and protesters may lead to their overthrow so that regimes will now try to nip any protests or demonstrations in the bud before they can blossom into events that they can no longer control or shape.

The PA and Fatah has learned this lesson well, and the Palestinians are worse off for it. Fatah has repeatedly failed the Palestinian people - refusing deal after deal to have a 2-state solution, and isn't a partner in peace. Fatah's Abbas would much rather retain the status quo - where he can profit from the situation without having to actually do any work towards building a civil society that is engaged in constructive activities rather than peddling a nihilistic worldview that sees eliminating Israel as the cure-all for what ails the Palestinian people.

Protests Continue In Tunisia

The entire political system put in place by now exiled leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali remains, and the opposition insists on clearing away the entire existing political structure. They are continuing to demonstrate and protest the government, which is still comprised of many allied to Ben Ali.



Tunisians are protesting the new premier, and the protests don't show any sign of abating, despite security forces continuing to use tear gas.

The demonstrators marched down the capital’s central Avenue Bourguiba, chanting slogans against the prime minister and seeking to reinforce pressure on the tottering new administration that has pledged to lead the country to elections after weeks of turmoil and bloodshed.

Mr. Ghannouchi has insisted that ministers who have remained in control of the powerful portfolios they held under Mr. Ben Ali all have “clean hands.”

On Wednesday, the Swiss government announced that it would move to freeze the Swiss assets of Mr. Ben Ali “and his entourage,” Reuters reported, and the United Nations said at a news conference that a team of human rights officials would head to Tunisia within a week to investigate possible abuses during the weeks of protests that forced Mr. Ben Ali from power.

Amid efforts to begin addressing the wrongs of the past government, it remained unclear when Mr. Ghannouchi would summon the new administration to its first, formal meeting.

In Tunis, protesters — fewer than at earlier marches — held up banners demanding that all vestiges of Mr. Ben Ali’s party be expunged. Police vans lined their route, but compared with previous days, when billows of tear-gas rolled over the city center, the police seemed initially at least to be holding back from such confrontation. The authorities also said they would ease a curfew, allowing people to say on the street until 8 p.m.

The new government is backed by the military and a tiny group of recognized opposition leaders, but it seems caught in a war on two fronts. On one side are Mr. Ben Ali’s former security forces, which the government has accused of continued acts of violence.

On the other are the grass-roots protesters in the streets, who demanded a faster and more radical purge of the old government and whose loyalties the new government is battling to maintain. “You sympathize with the current government,” one woman shouted, expressing a common sentiment. “How are you supposed to represent the people?”

Tunisian prosecutors are looking at whether Ben Ali looted the Tunisian treasury, and the Swiss are also looking to freeze his assets.

And to think that the protests began in earnest after a Tunisian man immolated himself to protest the awful economic situation in the country:

Labor unions, students and members of the Ennahdha Islamist party — which Ben Ali banned in 1992 and cracked down upon for years — have been among those protesting since his ouster.

A new unity government announced Monday was mostly made up of old guard politicians. A day later, at least four opposition ministers quit, aligning themselves with demonstrators who insist democratic change is impossible with former Ben Ali supporters still in power.

Ghannouchi and interim president Fouad Mebazaa, the former speaker of the lower house of parliament, quit the ruling RCD party Tuesday in an attempt to distance themselves from Ben Ali. The party itself kicked out Ben Ali, its founder, national TV reported.

The protests began in December, after an educated but unemployed 26-year-old man set himself on fire when police confiscated the fruit and vegetables he was selling without a permit. The move hit a nerve among frustrated jobless youths and prompted protests around the nation. Officials say 78 protesters and civilians died in the protests that swept Ben Ali from power — many killed by police bullets.

Ben Ali was often criticized for a heavy-handed repression against his opponents, curbing civil liberties and running a police state — though he was praised for developing tourism and allying with the U.S. against terrorism.

UPDATE:
The Tunisian government says that it has released the last of political prisoners that were detained under Ben Ali, but that has done little to stem the calls for the interim government to step aside.

Upheaval Continues In Tunisia

Despite the exile of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi stepping aside so that the head of the parliament could run things, the political situation in Tunisia remains in flux.

Tunisia's new coalition government hit trouble Tuesday, with three ministers quitting and an opposition party threatening to walk out in protest at the presence of members of the party of the ousted president.

Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi brought opposition leaders into the coalition Monday after president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali fled to Saudi Arabia following weeks of street protests. But key figures from the old guard kept their jobs, angering many.

Police in Tunis repeatedly used teargas in an attempt to break up a protest by several hundred opposition party supporters and trade unionists who labeled the new government a "sham." Protesters would scatter, but then regroup to continue.

Several hundred people also protested against the new government in Monastir, south of Tunis.

Abid al-Briki of the Tunisian labor union UGTT said its three ministers would withdraw from the government because it included members of Ben Ali's RCD party.

"This is in response to the demands of people on the streets," Briki said.

Far too many people in the government are closely associated with Ben Ali and are seen as nothing more than a continuation of the Ben Ali government and its policies. The crackdown against protesters isn't helping matters either.


Ghannouchi was interviewed and he hoped that elections could be held so that the Tunisians could have their views aired and the government formed on that basis:



Meanwhile, the upheaval in Tunisia has brought out demonstrators in other parts of the Middle East, and several men set themselves on fire in Egypt to protest the situation.

As the leaders of the established opposition parties renounced the unity government, the revolutionary passions unleashed across the region continued to reverberate, as two more men in Egypt set themselves ablaze and a third was stopped before he could do so. Those self-immolations added to a wave of six others, all in apparent imitation of the one that set off the Tunisian uprising a month ago.



The new unity government was showing strains practically from the moment it was sworn in on Monday, with new protests focused on its links to the ousted president, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali.

It's no wonder that there are reports that the situation in Tunisia could be a tipping point for other autocratic and despotic regimes in the Middle East.

The “Jasmine Revolution” in Tunisia today may well go down in history as the Arab equivalent of the Solidarity movement in the Gdansk shipyard in Poland in 1980 that sparked wider protests that a decade later ultimately led to the collapse of the Soviet Union and its empire. (In fairness, the Sudanese people probably should be credited with the first modern popular protest that changed their leadership, when protracted street demonstrations overthrew President Jaafar Nimeiry in 1985 – though that change did not last, and Sudan soon after found itself under military rule once again.)

2. The grievances that the Tunisian demonstrators have articulated in recent weeks – and in other forms in recent decades – are also widely shared across the entire Arab world, with the possible exception of some of the smaller wealthy countries in the Gulf. These complaints are about rising prices and job shortages, but also about the heavy-handed and condescending manner in which ruling Arab elites treat their citizens and deny them the most basic human rights of expression, credible representation, political participation, holding power accountable, and equitable access to the resources of the state and the opportunities of the free market.

That includes countries that are seen as allies and key to US foreign policy in the region like Egypt and Saudi Arabia, as well as Iran, Lebanon, and Syria. Expect those other regimes to learn from the mistakes of Ben Ali - and to avoid any sign of weakness, including making any form of concession to demonstrators like refusing to run for upcoming elections or telling security forces to cease firing on crowds. Once Ben Ali made those declarations, his time in power was limited.

Tunisian Crisis Continues As Prime Minister Cedes Power To Parliament

Who exactly is in charge in Tunisia now that former thug in charge Zine El Abidine Ben Ali went into exile and his Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi has ceded power to the speaker of the Parliament.

While that sounds like a democratic transfer of power, the truth of the matter is that everyone involved in the events of the past week are allied with Ben Ali and are culpable for the horrendous conditions in the country.

Mr. Ghannouchi, 69, a close ally of Mr. Ben Ali from his home town of Sousse, had declared himself interim president on Friday in violation of the Tunisian constitution, and he immediately became a target of the popular anger that brought down Mr. Ben Ali. By late Friday night, Facebook pages that had provided a central forum for the revolt had replaced their slogan “Ben Ali, Out” with a new one: “Ghannouchi, out!”

Some Tunisians on Saturday attributed the continued rioting over night to anger at Mr. Ghannouchi’s “coup,” but in the chaos around the capital it was becoming hard to distinguish protests from looting.

The handover to the speaker of parliament announced Saturday accords with the provisions of the Tunisian constitution. The speaker, Foued Mebazaa, is expected to hold elections to reconstitute the government within 60 days.

Tunisia, however, has essentially been a one-party police state with no record of free elections, so the speaker of the parliament is himself another ally guided to his position by Mr. Ben Ali.

Ben Ali stayed in power because he surrounded himself with people who he could trust. Ghannouchi, with an economics background sounded good on paper, but he had been closely alligned with Ben Ali since he entered the Ben Ali government in 1999. He was as much of a problem as Ben Ali.



The conditions in the country remain perilous, and there are reports that a fire at a Tunisian prison has killed at least 42 detainees.

Also, reports that Ben Ali had fled to France yesterday were incorrect. Ben Ali fled to Jedda, Saudi Arabia.

Conditions and reports are contradictory as to what is going on in Tunis, the capital of the country:

No street protests in the capital, Tunis, were reported Saturday, but reports of rioting and looting in the country and the burning of Tunis' main train station have surfaced. Security forces also have been spotted rounding up and roughing up people.

At least 42 people died when a fire swept through a prison in the eastern Tunisian city of Monastir, Dr. Ali Chadley of the University Hospital of Monastir told CNN. It was not immediately clear what sparked the fire.

A travel warning from the British Foreign Office on Saturday said "there have been demonstrations, some violent" In Tunis and other locations, citing Sousse, Sfax, Nabul, Hammamet, Douze, Kasserine, Requeb and Thia.

"There was significant looting in Tunis overnight and there continue to be reports of rioting and looting, including in residential areas," said the office, which recommended against all but essential travel to the country.

Crisis in Tunisia UPDATE: Coup? Revolution?

Tunisia is being rocked with rioting and the Tunisian president's statements calling for dismissing the government and that he will step down at the end of his term in office in 2014 have fallen on deaf ears.

Demonstrations gave way to rioting as police used live ammunition to quash the demonstrations.

Security forces were seen brutally beating protesters, and the demonstrators fled amid the security show of force.

This comes a day after Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali announced concessions to meet grievances of many of his fellow citizens.

The unrest underscores concerns among Tunisians and in the international community that security forces have been badly overreacting to peaceful gatherings.

Earlier, thousands congregated in front of the Interior Ministry, and chanted slogans such as "Get out!" and "Freedom for Tunisia!"

Haykal Maki, a pro-opposition lawyer who was in the throng, said protesters want a "regime change," the resignation of Ben Ali, and lawsuits addressing the regime's corruption.

Tunisia has been wracked by angry demonstrations, with citizens -- angry with the government's performance -- protesting high unemployment, alleged corruption, rising prices, and a limitations on rights.

The wave of protests was sparked by the suicide of an unemployed college graduate, a man who torched himself in December after police confiscated his fruit cart, cutting off his source of income.

In an address on national TV on Thursday night, Ben Ali addressed the crisis in a speech that came as street unrest percolated and a message purportedly from an al Qaeda affiliate announced its support of protesters.

He vowed to cut prices of basic foodstuffs, to lift censorship and to ensure police do not use live ammunition except in self-defense, and he indicated that he will not run again for president.

The official death toll is 23 thus far, but demonstrators claim that the total is three times that amount and many more have been injured by heavy-handed police tactics. Protesters continue defying the curfew set by the government.

It's interesting that Wikileaks cables have come into play here as well. US cables show concern for corruption within the Tunisian government, and this has vindicated opposition leaders and strengthened their resolve.

UPDATE:
There are conflicting reports, but it is possible that a coup or revolution is underway. There are reports that the Tunisian President left the country (possibly to France) while others report that he called an emergency and sacked his cabinet with elections to be held in six months. Most curious is the Jerusalem Post report that the Tunisian Prime Minister has taken power,
which would suggest a coup. Thus far, the Jerusalem Post is the only outlet to report that the Prime Minister has assumed power.

It's a confusing situation to say the least.

UPDATE:
Apparently the news that the Prime Minister assumed control was reported by the AP as well, which would confirm the Jerusalem Post reporting.

UPDATE:
So what is known about Mohamed Ghannouchi, the Prime Minister who assumed power in the wake of Ben Ali fleeing the country? He's been Prime Minister since 1999 and comes from an economics background. I'm not sure how much autonomy he had under Ben Ali so it's an open question as to what he will do going forward. He seems to be more of a bureaucrat than a leader, although he has been taking a more active role since the crisis first erupted.

UPDATE:
Some further thoughts about the Wikileaks documents highlighting the corruption in Tunisia. It isn't all that surprising that the documents make mention of corruption there or elsewhere in the world. Corruption is rampant among most countries around the world - Africa in particular. It shouldn't be surprising that corruption is mentioned.

Still, the leaked documents have less to do with the current situation than the fact that peaceful demonstrators took to the streets over the rising food prices and a situation that was heading towards a Zimbabwe-type finish when Ben Ali's forces started firing on the demonstrators causing riots. The situation came to a head when Tunisian forces opened fire on demonstrators - the Wikileaks documents didn't come into play. From that point on, it became a struggle for survival.