Morocco: The February 20 Movement renewed its rejection of what it describes as "sham reforms." The movement demands genuine political reforms that transform Morocco's controlled political process to one capable of producing the change demanded by the masses. The movement also renewed its demands for prosecuting corrupt officials and holding fair elections. In addition to the political demands, the movement raised slogans demanding social justice, freedom, and dignity.

Syria: The Syrian opposition is rallying its supporters to participate in a day of anger against Russia, as Moscow continues to support President Bashar al-Assad's regime. Following Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's meeting with British Prime Minister David Cameron, Medvedev stated that it is wrong to place additional pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and force him to end security operations. The Syrian opposition has called on supporters online to protest across Syrian cities and towns and to burn the Russian flag.

Libya: Fifteen people were killed in an attack by Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi's battalions on an oil facility near Ras Lanuf. The Libyan National Transitional Council announced that its fighters fended off the battalions' attack on Bani Walid, one of the final strongholds of Colonel Gaddafi's loyalists. The NTC forces began reinforcing their siege on the city of Sirte, also under Gaddafi's control.

Bahrain: The Youth of the February 14 Revolution Coalition called for a massive demonstration under the slogan "Right of Return to Martyrs' Square" in the Sanabis region on Thursday. The head of the Shura Council of al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, Jamil al-Kazem, demanded the regime respond to the people's political and social demands and said that the protestors will not back down until their demands are met.

Libya: Reports from the Libyan town of Bi'r al-Ghanam, about 80 kilometers south of the capital Tripoli, indicate that armed opposition fighters have taken control of the area. Eyewitnesses in the area say there is no sign of government forces other than burned tanks and artillery wreckage. On the other hand, Libyan Prime Minister Baghdadi al-Mahmudi responded to the reports by saying that the government forces retook control of the town and that life there has returned to normal.

Syria: Kuwait, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia have decided to recall their ambassadors from Damascus for consultations. On the ground, reports from Syria indicate that the Syrian army opened fire on a number of areas of Deir az-Zour this morning. Yesterday, the city witnessed similar attacks in which over 50 people were killed and dozens more injured, according to opposition activists. These reports were denied by a Syrian military spokesman.

Morocco: The February 20 Movement condemned what it described as the policy of "deaf ears" adopted by the authorities in relation to the movement's demands. The movement organized the largest protests yet in the cities of Tangier and Casablanca to reiterate its rejection of the new constitution and demand a "democratic constitution devoted to the sovereignty of the people."

Syria: Protests continue throughout the country despite the Syrian cabinet's approval of a draft law that allows for the formation of political parties. The authorities described the draft law as "activating the multi-party political system." However, the opposition says that the law is a "sham solution" because Article 8 of the constitution stipulates that the Ba'ath Party is the country's ruling party.

Libya: Only 100 kilometers south of the capital Tripoli, Muammar Gaddafi's forces launched an attack on Gualish in an attempt to regain control of the town. The revolutionaries said they managed to repel Gaddafi's forces two kilometers from Gualish after dozens of fellow fighters arrived to support them from the city of Zintan, the revolutionaries' largest base in western Libya. Meanwhile, NATO continues to launch nightly raids on central Tripoli, which the government says is causing a heavy civilian death toll.

Egypt: In the midst of their current revolution, Egypt celebrated the anniversary of the July 23 Revolution, also known as the Revolution of the Free Officers, which abolished Egypt's constitutional monarchy and established a republic. More than 60 years later, the Egyptian people are once again challenging their government and demanding it be replaced with a civilian government free of corruption and oppression.

Yemen: Deputy Minister of Information Abdu al-Janadi says President Ali Abdullah Saleh will soon address the nation. Saleh will be interviewed by Saudi state television in Riyadh, where he has been staying for the past three weeks for medical treatment. The ruling Congress Party announced that Saleh will soon return to the country and that he plans to transfer his authorities to parliament and to form a coalition government to prepare for early elections. The opposition described the announcements as "a coup against the Gulf Initiative."

Libya: Libyan Justice Minister Mohamed al-Gamudi said that the International Criminal Court's decision to issue arrest warrants for Muammar Gaddafi, his son, and his intelligence chief is politically motivated and is being used as a cover-up for NATO's crimes. He vowed to prosecute members of NATO. The decision has prompted the opposition to reject any dialogue with the regime.

Syria: Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Federation Council of Russia, Mikhail Margelov, met with the Syrian opposition's delegation in Moscow today. The delegation called on Russia to use its influence to push the Syrian regime to end the violence against peaceful protestors. Margelov urged Syria to implement real reforms and stated that Russia will do everything possible to prevent the Syrian crisis from descending into a Libya-style war.

Morocco: The February 20 Movement has once again taken to the streets, this time in protest of the constitutional amendments proposed by King Mohamed VI. They assert that the amendments do not sufficiently reduce the king's authority. While the amendments give the government executive authority, the king remains the head of the army and retains religious and judicial authority. The new constitution also maintains the king's right to appoint the prime minister.

(Mosaic Video Alert: April 7, 2011) New TV features a profile on Libyan leader Omar al-Mukhtar, also known as the “Lion of the Desert,” and the “Sheikh of the Mujahideen.” In the early 20th century, al-Mukhtar founded the resistance movement in Libya against the Italian occupation and has long been seen by Arabs, especially Libyans, as a role model. In 1931, he was sentenced to death and executed by Italian forces in front of 20,000 Libyans.

(Mosaic Video Alert: February 8, 2011) Lebanon's New TV recounts the history of Egypt's last three revolutions: Starting with the "Orabi Revolt" that fought against Khedive and British control of Egypt, to the "Free Officers Movement" that unseated the Egyptian monarchy and replaced it with a republic, and concludes with the "Bread Riots" that led to Anwar Sadat's assassination in 1981.

(Euronews: 1410 PST, February 4, 2011) Iran's supreme leader is calling on the people of Egypt and Tunisia to unite around their religion and against the West, calling the recent events an Islamic liberation movement.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was speaking for the first time since the recent uprising. He told an audience of tens of thousands that Iran's own Islamic revolution of 1979, which deposed the U.S.-backed Shah, had served as an example to people living under similar dictatorships.

(Al Jazeera English: 1715 PST, January 31, 2011) Organizers are gearing up for the largest turnouts yet on the seventh day of demonstrations and marches throughout Egypt. Protesters have flooded the streets almost around the clock since the January 25th "Day of Anger," and one week later tensions are reaching a breaking point. The Egyptian Army today declared that it would not fire on protesters, setting the stage for a culmination of the largest public displays of dissent that the country has ever seen, with the population united in their goal to oust President Hosni Mubarak.

Click here for important background information on the unrest in Egypt.

Watch Al Jazeera English's live broadcast stream, online now.

The Iraqi elections are over but failed to produce a clear winner. While former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi narrowly finished first in the poll, it might take weeks before we find out if he'll be able to build the coalition needed to achieve the magic number of 163 seats in the Iraqi Parliament in order to form a government. But there is another election soon to take place in Sudan, and let me start by predicting the results: current President Omar el-Bashir will be elected for another term.

Opposition parties from the south have been calling for a delay of the elections, the first multiparty ones to be held since 1986, and threatening a boycott due to concerns over security and possible rigging. However, al-Bashir -- who is running for office again despite being wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes in Darfur -- has been campaigning all over the country and insisting the elections be held as scheduled.

At a recent rally held at Damazin in the Blue Nile state, al-Bashir lashed out

at a coalition of opposition parties who have been calling for a temporary delay of the elections.

"Holding elections in Sudan is a national obligation that should be fulfilled... we don't have options in this respect. If they took the right to oppose the elections, we do have the same right to reject the referendum in the south."

Al-Bashir also threatened to kick out election monitors, and cancel a referendum on independence for the south should opposition parties boycott April 11-13 elections.

Meanwhile, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) announced on Wednesday that its candidate, Yasir Arman, would boycott the April poll because of electoral irregularities and the continuing conflict in the country's western Darfur region. A concern echoed by Human Rights Watch (HRW).

"Conditions in Sudan are not yet conducive for a free, fair and credible election," Georgette Gagnon, HRW's Africa director, said last week. "Unless there is a dramatic improvement in the situation, it's unlikely that the Sudanese people will be able to vote freely for leaders of their choice."

According to HRW, the problems in Darfur and repression of political opponents are major obstacles to a free and fair vote.

In a report released on Tuesday, the Brussels-based International Crisis Group accused the government in Khartoum of using flawed census figures to draft unfair election laws and skew electoral districts in favor of the ruling National Congress Party. Also, the U.S.-based Carter Center, which has been allowed to observe the process, has suggested that Sudan postpone the vote to ensure that it can be properly administered by the National Election Commission.

Khalil Ibrahim, the leader of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the largest rebel group in Sudan's western Darfur region, also joined the call on for a delay of the elections.

"These elections are based mainly on false senses, especially in Darfur. Masses of populations ... will be excluded from the elections," He continued to describe the elections as a "theatrical act" on the Qatar-based al-Jazeera TV.

But al-Bashir remains unfazed. He has been campaigning diligently, appearing in different regions wearing different costumes. Last year he defied the International Criminal Court which issued an arrest warrant for his arrest for war crimes in Darfur. In a few days, he'll parade victorious in Khartoum; just another scene, from another act.

Article first published on the Huffington Post

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In 1999 on the southern tip of Taiwan, where the majority population of Hakka Chinese had settled, the government planned to build a huge dam. The Hakka farmers went to the capital city of Taipei to protest. The dam, they said, would destroy the ecosystem, and was a risky enterprise considering the earthquakes and landslides the area experiences. (I was there during an earthquake...not pleasant.) Lin Sheng Xiang, a Hakka from the village of Meinong, and pursuing a musical career near Taipei, became involved with the struggle to prevent the building of the dam. He moved back to his hometown in Meinong, and the Labor Exchange Band was formed, giving a musical voice to the movement, and the dam was never built. Although the Labor Exchange band is no more, Lin Sheng Xiang has continued to create thoughtful music along with lyricist Zhong Yongfeng. When I interviewed him in the bucolic south of Taiwan, he played a Hakka folksong, a charming song he wrote about his daughter, and a song (co written with Zhong Yongfen) from his latest CD,"Growing up Wild" the concept of which is songs about females.

I was surprised that Lin Sheng Xiang's name came up as often as it did when I interviewed musicians and record people. And although no one ever called it "protest music" everyone acknowledged the call to social responsibility and greater awareness that his songs contain. Our own Woody Guthrie's songs reach out to the heartland, touching on family values and love of the land. I think there is a brotherly resonance in the songs of Lin Sheng Xiang.