Anti-regime protests sweep Khartoum

Dubai TV - A wave of popular rage is sweeping the Sudanese capital following calls to launch protests from local mosques in condemnation of the deteriorating economic conditions and to demand change. Yesterday, fierce confrontations broke out between Sudanese police and al-Khartoum University students. Anti-riot police used batons and fired tear gas and rubber bullets, in a new development described by the Sudanese opposition as 'the first step towards change.'

Kuwait court dissolves parliament, declares polls illegal

Al Jazeera - Al Jazeera correspondent in Kuwait reported that opposition representatives resigned from the former National Assembly that was reinstated today by the Constitutional Court. This comes after the Constitutional Court issued a ruling voiding the parliamentary elections that were conducted earlier this year. According to the court, since the parliamentary elections are invalid, the current assembly must be dissolved, and the former assembly, whose majority supports the government, is to be restored.

Delayed poll results keep Egyptians on edge and on the streets

Al-Alam - In Egypt, Secretary-General of the Supreme Presidential Elections Commission Hatem Bagato said the presidential election results will be announced on Saturday or Sunday. Bagato said that looking into the appeals presented by both candidates, Mohamed Morsy and Ahmed Shafiq, requires some time. Protests and sit-ins are continuing in Cairo and other Egyptian cities over the military council's decisions and especially the constitutional declaration that limits the powers of the next president. Protestors expressed fear of fraud in the presidential election results after the Supreme Elections Commission decided to postpone announcing the results.

Iran, P5+1 powers fail to settle another dispute

Dubai TV - The talks between the West and Iran over the latter's nuclear program have failed in Moscow. The two-day talks ended with the two sides agreeing to meet again next month in Istanbul. Both sides confirmed they have started to tackle critical issues, but warned that significant gaps still exist between them. With this, the Russians have failed to achieve political gains on the international front.

Syrian pilot defects after landing in Jordan

BBC Arabic - Jordan granted political asylum to the defected Syrian pilot Hassan Mari, after his MiG-21 fighter jet landed in Mafraq Airport this morning. Syrian TV had announced contact was lost with the warplane during a training mission in Daraa. Activists said this is the first defection of an air force pilot with his plane since the uprising began.

Dire humanitarian conditions loom in southern Yemen

Al-Forat - Widespread disease, destruction, and a lack of food and medicine, is the status of Yemen's southern provinces, after having been afflicted by war and armed conflicts. This state of the security and humanitarian conditions in Yemen's southern provinces are the result of heated battles between the Yemeni army and armed elements of al-Qaeda. It is a humanitarian crisis that threatens the life of over half a million refugees, who were displaced by battles that caused widespread destruction to the southern regions' infrastructure.

Image: Al Jazeera

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.

Kuwait: The attempt to form a new Kuwaiti government has reached a stalemate. Fifteen opposition ministers walked out in protest of the government's new makeup as soon as the new cabinet was sworn-in before parliament. This is the seventh cabinet formed by Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammad. Meanwhile, protests erupted outside parliament, as citizens have grown frustrated with the political void that they say is distracting the nation and slowing economic growth.

Syria: The Syrian army deployed tanks and armored trucks to Hama today to suppress peaceful protests, as similar operations were simultaneously carried out in Daraa, Banias, Homs, Damascus, and Muadamia. This comes as the European Union began to impose an arms embargo on Syria and sanctions on 13 Syrian officials accused of repressing protestors. A UN spokesman said that the Syrian authorities barred a UN humanitarian assessment team from entering Daraa, despite promises to facilitate the team's work.

Yemen: Thousands of Yemenis throughout the country continue to demonstrate, demanding President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s resignation and prosecution while rejecting all foreign mediation. Similar protests took place in Taiz, Aden, Adq, and Sa’ad. Over 300 protestors were injured in Hodeida province when Yemeni security forces dispersed a teacher’s rally at the Office of Education. Eyewitnesses said the forces used water cannons, teargas, and live bullets against protestors.

Libya: Revolutionaries near the city of Ajdabiya have made progress in their fight against Muammar Gaddafi. Several members of Gaddafi’s forces and Interior Ministry employees have joined the revolutionaries in Tripoli, while NATO resumed air strikes last night on the capital.

A funeral was held today for 15-year-old Ahmad Said Shams, shot to death by Bahraini security forces on Wednesday. Eyewitnesses said that security forces shot the victim outside his home and prevented him from receiving medical aid and from being transported to a hospital until he died on site. Al-Alam reports that during a protest called the “March of the Koran” in Manama, dozens were injured by live bullets and tear gas used by Saudi-supported forces to disperse crowds. Human Rights Watch has condemned the Bahraini forces for committing human rights violations against the people.

To commemorate “Land Day,” Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jerusalem, and the 1948 territories protested against Palestinian division and Israeli occupation. Tonight, Future TV bring us a report on the demonstration, in which protestors carried Palestinian flags and chanted slogans calling for national unity.

Al-Jazeera reports from Libya, where Gaddafi's brigades have bombed the eastern entrance of Brega city. Revolutionaries said that Misurata was also bombed this morning, reportedly killing up to 20 people. According to numerous reports, Gaddafi's brigades took control of Ras Lanuf after bombing the revolutionaries' strongholds with heavy weaponry. The revolutionaries are now defending Brega after what they referred to as a tactical withdrawal from Bin Jawad, Ras Lanuf and Aqela. Former Libyan officials believe that the regime's days are numbered after the resignation of Gaddafi’s foreign minister.

The BBC reports that the Yemeni opposition has rejected a new offer made by President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The new offer entails transferring the president's jurisdictions to a transitional government, and in exchange the president would stay in power until the end of his presidential term in 2013. The protestors repeatedly stressed that they will continue mobilizing and organizing daily marches until the president steps down.

Dubai TV reports that the Kuwaiti cabinet has resigned in order to avoid questioning by the People's Assembly. This news comes a day after ministers from the ruling family resigned following questioning. The minister of oil, the minster of information, the foreign minister, and the minister of economic development all stepped down. The Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah is expected to reappoint Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser al-Sabah in order to form a new government.

2010 could go down in history as the year of natural and environmental disasters. We’ve witnessed earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, wildfires and a drought in Russia, a devastating oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and now one fifth of Pakistan is submerged under water due to floods leaving more than 20 million people without potable water, food, shelter and medicine.

The United Nations general secretary, Ban Ki-moon, called this latest disaster a “slow-motion tsunami,” and appealed for swift aid.

"Make no mistake, this is a global disaster," Ban said at the UN general assembly. "Pakistan is facing a slow-motion tsunami. Its destructive powers will accumulate and grow with time," he warned.

Relief agencies say the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Pakistan is greater than this year's earthquake in Haiti; however, relief for Pakistan may be a long time coming.

"Although governments have been coming forward with increasing generosity, the public response has not been the immediate outpouring of generosity that we've seen for Haiti and the tsunami five years ago," the U.N. Under Secretary John Holmes said.

According to a CBS news report, sixteen days after the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, aid commitments totaled $1.4 billion. Sixteen days after Pakistan's floods began, promises added up to just $200 million.

Yet despite the heart-wrenching television images

broadcast across the globe showing massive destruction and enormous human suffering, the world has been slow to react to calls for aid. Why has Pakistan been forsaken?

The most common answer to the slow response is “donor fatigue.” Many believe that there have been too many disasters in one year, and donors have reached their limit in giving, especially since many still suffer from the effects of the financial crisis. Another factor has been a low death toll.  But Pakistan's tarnished image plays a major role, according to a few Pakistani Americans I’ve spoken to.

“Zardari’s government is corrupt,” said Ali Khan, a financial analyst from San Jose. “Many people do not believe that their contributions will reach the right people,” he added.

Another Pakistani American I’ve spoken to placed the blame for the slow response on the anti-Muslim sentiments sweeping the Western world.

Meanwhile, the United States has pledged an additional $60 million to the U.N. flood-relief effort in Pakistan, bringing its contribution to $150 million in a move designed to encourage other governments and private donors to boost their aid.

In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia has pledged $124.29 million in aid for Pakistan’s flood relief campaign, surpassing the western economic giants - and Islamabad’s allies in the war against terror – according to Al Arabiya TV. The UAE has also been leading a massive relief campaign to transport food and medicine to flood-stricken remote areas in Pakistan. Oil-rich Kuwait however,  has been criticized for it’s meager $10 million contribution.

Arab media has given the crisis extensive coverage and has played a major role in creating awareness during the holy month of Ramadan, a month known for giving.

Weather forecasts indicate that there could be four more weeks of rain, which could exasperate the situation even further.

We at Link TV have a set up a page on our website to keep you updated with the news in Pakistan and provide you with a useful guide so that you too can contribute in some way in the saving and rebuilding of lives there.

Get the latest updates and find out what you can do to help

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