Protests spread to Libya

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http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/02/16/muslim.world.unrest/?hpt=Sbin

Protests spread to Libya

By the CNN Wire Staff

February 16, 2011 12:05 p.m. EST

(CNN) -- Unprecedented demonstrations sweeping the Middle East and North Africa

spread Wednesday to Libya, where police clashed with anti-government protesters

in the coastal city of Benghazi, an independent source told CNN.

About 200 protesters came out to show support for human rights activist and

lawyer Fathi Terbil, who had been detained earlier, the source said. Several

people were arrested after police confronted the protesters, the source added.

But Libya -- ruled by Moammar Gadhafi since 1969 -- is not Egypt, said a highly

placed Libyan source close to the government who asked not to be identified

because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

" There is nothing serious here, " he said. " These are just young people fighting

each other. "

Driven by discontent and fueled by social media, protests in the region spread

this week not just to Libya but to Iran and Bahrain. Anti-government sentiment

has also manifested itself on the streets of Algeria, Jordan, Syria and Yemen.

In Yemen, Sanaa University students protested Wednesday, calling for an improved

curriculum, but the demonstration rapidly morphed into an anti-government stand.

Participants said government supporters outside the university gates hurled

rocks, but the situation stayed under control. It was at least the sixth day

that scuffles had broken out between the government's supporters and foes.

Activist Abdul Rahman Barman said three anti-government protesters were injured

when government supporters attacked them after the demonstration. One had to be

hospitalized for head injuries, he said.

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has been in power for 32 years but has

pledged not to run for re-election when his current term ends in 2013.

In nearby Bahrain, thousands of people marched in a peaceful funeral procession

for Ali Abdulhadi Mushaima, who was killed when clashes erupted during the

funeral for another protester.

They camped out at the Pearl Roundabout, a landmark in the capital, Manama, that

has been adopted by protesters as their Tahrir Square, the epicenter of Egypt's

revolution.

A massive pearl sits at the apex of a circle of inward-sweeping arches, and

Wednesday, Bahrainis camped out at its base and painted anti-government slogans.

Later in the day, flag-waving pro-government demonstrators were out in Manama

and the second largest city of Muharraq.

New York Times journalist Kristof said security forces have backed off

after " a concerted deliberate effort to use a truly stunning amount of force. "

" Now that the regime has backed off, it's a little hard to say where things will

go, " Kristof told CNN. " It is possible that ... there will be some kind of truce

and agreement to have more democracy, some more concessions. "

Large crowds showed up for a funeral as well in the Iranian capital, where

26-year-old Saneh Jaleh was laid to rest.

Iranian authorities said Jaleh belonged to the pro-government Basij militia and

was shot to death by the outlawed People's Mujahedeen of Iran.

But some of Jaleh's acquaintances disputed that account, and Jaleh's funeral

strangely drew both supporters and foes of the Islamic regime, which has cracked

down on dissent even though it publicly praised Egyptians for toppling President

Hosni Mubarak.

International journalists are barred from covering Iran's unrest, but a

protester told CNN that police fired tear gas and beat people with batons.

Sara, whose full name has been withheld for security reasons, said she was

risking her safety to march on the streets because Jaleh was part of Iran's

reformist Green Movement.

" We are not allowing his blood to go to waste, " she said. " I am doing this for

him. "

In the place that gave rise to the spirit of the region's freedom movement,

changes were still slowly unfolding.

Tunisia lifted its midnight-until-4 a.m. curfew, though a state of emergency

remains intact, the state-run Tunis Afrique Presse said.

Weeks of demonstrations forced the ouster of longtime President Zine El Abidine

Ben Ali in January.

" Tunisia now after the revolution of its population is now searching for its

independence, " said Lazhar Samali, an engineer who protested against the

government. " It's a sovereign state, and Tunisia has in its own hands its

destiny. "

The end of Ben Ali's 23-year rule inspired Egyptians, and then others, to rise

up for their rights.

Last Friday, after 18 days of mass demonstrations in Egypt, Mubarak stepped

down, leaving the nation in the hands of its powerful military.

CNN's Tim Lister, Mohammed Jamjoom, Jenifer Fenton and Mitra Mobasherat

contributed to this report.