Arab uprisings that have spread to the conservative Gulf region face a crucial test this week in Saudi Arabia where activists have made unprecedented calls for mass protests against the kingdom's absolute monarchy.
Gulf leaders are struggling to hold back an Internet-era generation of Arabs who appear less inclined to accept arguments appealing to religion and tradition to explain why ordinary citizens should be shut out of decision-making.
Protests are planned in other Gulf countries such as Yemen, Kuwait and Bahrain on Friday, the region's weekend. The time after Friday prayers has proved to be crucial in popular uprisings that have brought down Tunisian and Egyptian rulers who once seemed invulnerable.
Saudi Arabia, the largest country in the Gulf, is home to Islam's holiest sites and a long-time U.S. ally that has ensured oil supplies for the West..
Be careful listening to the MSM war justifications from the "left" or right
ReplyDeletefor Western “humanitarian” military interventions in Libya that Qaddafi is the New Hitler massacring 10s of thousands of his own people etc etc
Even the western backed rebels ,after time to count the dead and wounded in the East of Libya ,including from accidental friendly fire from often military untrained but heavily armed rebels, claim nothing like that at all.
“More than 400 people have been killed and 2,000 wounded in fighting in eastern Libya since Feb. 17, a member of the insurgents’ provisional health committee told reporters March 9 in Benghazi. The official, Gebril Hewadi, said the dead include 350 civilians and 50 rebel fighters, according to regional hospitals. The number of people missing is unknown, he said. “
Source:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-11/qaddafi-s-son-mounts-offensive-as-nato-holds-back-on-imposing-no-fly-zone.html
The dead and wounded counted here no doubt include dead, wounded or murdered foreign workers caught up in the fighting and programs.
That ,is the total claimed killed or wounded from both sides ,The "official" Rebel count from all the rebel held areas!