Syria: Human rights activists reported that security forces stormed several towns in the countryside of Idlib this morning. Yesterday, 34 people were killed by security forces, according to the Syrian Revolution General Commission. On the second consecutive day of security operations in Homs, Syrian state media reported that eight security members were killed by what it referred to as terrorist groups. The opposition has named tomorrow the "Friday of International Protection" in the hopes that the international community will step in to help protect Syrian civilians. 

Libya: The International Criminal Court announced today that has it requested the International Criminal Police Organization, Interpol, issue an arrest warrant for Muammar al-Gaddafi, his son Saif al-Islam, and his intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senoussi on charges of committing crimes against humanity. This comes after Gaddafi denied fleeing from Libya to Niger in an audio message. On the ground, the National Transitional Council dispatched additional forces to the town of Bani Walid. A spokesman for the revolutionaries said clashes broke out last night after Gaddafi's battalions launched attacks on the revolutionaries from inside the town. 

Bahrain: Security forces launched a fierce attack on activists who were celebrating the recent release of doctors and workers from the regime's jails. Saudi-backed Bahraini security forces fired live ammunition, sound bombs, and tear gas to disperse and pursue the protestors. Politically, the Bahraini opposition has accused the US and the UK of collaborating with Manama in the murder of civilians and of supplying the regime with internationally-banned arms and ammunition. The opposition also condemned the Arab League for ignoring reports of human rights violations in Bahrain.

(Mosaic Video Alert: March 28, 2011) NBN reports on a new crime committed by Muammar Gaddafi and his regime: the rape of Iman al-Obeidi. The victim is a "lawyer who embodies the model Libyan woman, but bothered the regime for being a free woman.” Iman was detained and raped by 15 of Gaddafi's mercenaries. The regime first accused al-Obeidi of being drunk and mentally ill, then offered to bribe the rape victim in exchange for her silence, a request that was rejected. Benghazi residents held a solidarity rally with Iman and online activists rallied behind her with a Facebook page entitled "We are all Iman al-Obeidi."

(Democracy Now! 0900 PST, February 5, 2011) In a special broadcast, Democracy Now! airs a two-hour program on the revolt against the U.S.-backed Mubarak regime.

Highlights include:

• Live Reports from Cairo with Democracy Now! senior producer Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Democracy Now! correspondent Anjali Kamat.
• Egyptian novelist Ahdaf Soueif on how life in Tahrir Square "is truly democracy in action."
• Columbia professor Rashid Khalidi on the impact of the Egyptian and Tunisian uprisings on the Middle East.
• Mohamed Abdel Dayem of the Committee to Protect Journalists on the continued attacks on journalists by supporters of the Mubarak regime.
• Khaled Fahmy, professor at the American University in Cairo, on reports that Hosni Mubarak has resigned as head of the ruling NDP party.
• University of California-Santa Barbara professor Paul Amar on the military’s role in a post-Mubarak Egypt.
• Stanford Professor Joel Beinin on the Egyptian labor movement and the historical roots of the January 25 uprising.
• Egyptian-American activist Mostafa Omar on the role of Egyptian youth in the protests.
• And we play the "video that started the revolution," Asmaa Mahfouz's January 18 message calling for protests in Tahrir Square on January 25.

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

(Democracy Now! - 28 January 2011) Protests have erupted across Egypt again today with the largest and most widespread anti-government demonstrations seen so far. In an unprecedented display of popular protest, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators are gathering in Cairo, Alexandria, Suez, Mansoura, Sharqiya and elsewhere. Intense confrontations are taking place with state security forces. The protests come amid a vast security clampdown. Earlier, the government blocked the internet, mobile phone and SMS services, with the hope of disrupting demonstration planning. Democracy Now! goes to Cairo to speak with Ahmad Shokr, an editor at the Egyptian daily newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm:

Democracy Now! Headlines

Uprising in Egypt: "This is the Biggest Political Challenge the Regime Has Yet to See from the Streets"

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