Demonstrations against long-serving governments continue to roil the Middle East and North Africa.
Yemeni anti-government demonstrators shout slogans during a demonstration demanding the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sana'a, Yemen, February 18, 2011 Anti-Government Protests Spread Across:
Yemen: At least one person was killed and eight wounded after a car passenger threw a grenade at a crowd of anti-government demonstrators in the southwestern city of Taiz. The attack took place as demonstrators took part in one of the "day of rage" rallies.
Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh is accused by protesters of running a repressive regime.
Bahrain: Security forces fired shots as mourners leaving a funeral tried to return to a central square in the capital, in defiance of a government ban on protests. Witnesses say many people were wounded in the crackdown.
Jordan: Protests turned violent, as government supporters clashed with demonstrators calling for political reforms. Reports say at least eight people were injured when government supporters attacked the demonstrators with batons.
Iran: Thousands of government supporters called for the execution of opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi during prayer services in Tehran.
Egypt: Tens of thousands of people packed Cairo's Tahrir Square for a day of celebration marking one week since President Hosni Mubarak stepped down.
The Algerian president has been in power since 1999. Many Algerians see him as an authoritarian leader who has failed to ease widespread poverty and high unemployment - factors that played a part in sparking recent uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. Tensions have been high in Algeria since early January, when at least three people were killed in several days of riots over rising food prices.
Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali stepped down on January 14, 2011, after 23 years in power. Anti-government protests were sparked by unemployment and high food prices. On 2.17.11 News reports say he is in a grave condition in a hospital in Saudi Arabia. On 6.21.11 he was convicted and sentenced to 35 years in jail for theft and of illegally possessing jewelry and large sums of cash.
Protesters march during a protest in Rabat, Morocco, to demand a new constitution that would bring greater democracy in the North African kingdom, February 20, 2011 Anti-government activists in Morocco marched to demand political reforms limiting the power of King Mohammed - similar to protests elsewhere in the Arab world. At least 2,000 people rallied in the capital, Rabat answering a protest call issued on social networking site Facebook. Marchers shouted slogans demanding a new constitution, greater economic opportunities and a crackdown on corruption.
Syrian state television is reporting Syria's Cabinet has resigned, and their president,Bashar al-Assad, accepted the cabinet's resignation.
The resignation on Tuesday, 3.29.11 comes as tens of thousands of Syrians rallied in support of the government, as the nation awaited an expected address by President Bashar al-Assad following more than a week of anti-government protests.
Government supporters poured into the streets of the capital Damascus and other major cities to take part in Tuesday's government-sanctioned rallies. The demonstrators chanted and waved flags and pictures of the president.
News reports say President Assad could announce an end to Syria's nearly 50-year-old emergency laws when he addresses the nation in the coming days.
The opposition protests represent the most serious threat ever to President Assad's 11-year-rule and the long-standing authority of his family.
On 3.24.11, the Syrian government announced a series of reforms, including possibly ending the country's emergency law, in the wake of a series of deadly anti-government protests. Protesters have been demanding that Assad lift Syria's 50-year-old emergency law which prohibits demonstrations.
Libya: Human Rights Watch says Libyan security forces killed 24 protesters during Thursday's crackdown on anti-government demonstrations. The U.S.-based rights group, citing witnesses, says security forces shot and killed protesters in an effort to break up "Day of Rage" demonstrations across the country.
The oil-rich nation, Libya has a more equitable standard of living than neighboring countries, but it is Mr. Ghadafi's crushing, often arbitrary, political system in place more than 41 years that protesters want changed.
2.23.11 Pres. Obama condemns Libyan violence , calls for international response. The President says the violence in Libya is "outrageous" and "unacceptable," and that his Administration is looking at the "full range of options we have to respond to this crisis." His full remarks.
2.25.11 President Obama signed an Executive Order regarding Libya Sanctions.
2.26.11 U.N. Security Council slaps Sanctions on Libya.
2.26.11 Ambassador Susan Rice says Qaddafi is "delusional" and unfit to lead.
3.22.11 - Obama on Libya: We have saved lives
3.23.11 - President Obama's plan on Libya 13:49
More information on the civil war in Libya.
