The U.S.-backed president of Yemen suffered a devastating political blow Sunday when his own powerful tribe demanded his resignation, joining religious leaders, young people and the opposition in calls for an end to his three decades in power. Massive crowds flooded cities and towns mourning dozens of protesters killed Friday when President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s security forces opened fire. Saleh appeared to be trying to hold on, firing his entire Cabinet ahead of what one government official said was a planned mass resignation, but making no mention of stepping down himself.
SYRIA: Police, protesters clash.
Police fired live ammunition and tear gas Sunday at thousands of Syrians protesting in a southern city for a third consecutive day, killing one person, activists said. The violence in Daraa, near Jordan, was fast becoming a major challenge for President Bashar Assad, who tried to contain the situation by freeing detainees and promising to fire officials responsible for the violence.
MOROCCO: Protesters staging demonstrations.
Several thousand protesters have staged protests in cities around Morocco to demand more political changes. A group of protesters in Casablanca clashed briefly with pro-government activists who arrived at the end of a demonstration.
VENEZUELA: Chavez speaks out against strikes on Libya.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez condemned military strikes against Libya on Saturday, accusing the U.S. and its European allies of attacking the country to seize its oil. Fidel Castro raised similar concerns in a column written before the first strikes, while the leftist leaders of Bolivia and Nicaragua also accused world powers of intervening with an eye to the North African country’s oil.
AFGHANISTAN: Taliban in Khadafy’s corner.
Moammar Khadafy has at least one good friend in the outside world — the Taliban in Afghanistan. “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan strongly condemns this politically motivated and uncalled-for intervention and adventure by the Western countries in the internal conflict of the people of Libya,” the Taliban announced in a statement e-mailed to news organizations and signed by the insurgents’ three key spokesmen.
