Libyan Rebel Commander Admits his Fighters Have Al-Qaeda Links

By Praveen Swami, Nick Squires and Duncan Gardham

Abdel-Hakim al-Hasidi, the Libyan rebel leader, has said jihadists who fought against allied troops in Iraq are on the front lines of the battle against Muammar Gaddafi's regime. Continue

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Libyan “Revolutionaries” Aren’t So Revolutionary..

By Against the Empire

I’m amazed at the police state that they have designed and who is in power in Benghazi. It was no doubt a complete error on the part of so-called “progressives” to take the side of these rebel forces (never mind those who hailed them as “revolutionaries”). Continue

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81 Reasons Why Gaza Has The Right To Self-defense

By Julie Webb-Pullman

In the face of continuing military attacks against civilian targets and the absence of any meaningful and/or enforceable UN Security Council Resolution to protect them, they have every legitimate reason to resort to self-defense, under Article 52 of the UN Charter. Continue

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Housing's Double Dip

By Mike Whitney

Prices are falling, home equity is drying up, foreclosures are at record highs, and the incentive to "walk away" and let the bank take the mortgage-loss has never been greater. Continue

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US Finances Rank Near Worst in the World: Study

By: Jeff Cox

The US ranks near the bottom of developed global economies in terms of financial stability and will stay there unless it addresses its burgeoning debt problems. Continue

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Coalition strikes kill 114 - Libya official: Mr Omar said 104 people were killed in Tripoli and the suburbs between Sunday and Wednesday, while 10 were killed in Sirte, the hometown of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, some 600 kilometres south of the capital.

Coalition airstrikes drive Khadafy troops from key city, bolster rebels: "Without the planes we couldn't have done this. Khadafy's weapons are at a different level than ours," said Ahmed Faraj, 38, a rebel fighter from Ajdabiya. "With the help of the planes we are going to push onward to Tripoli, God willing."

Libyan rebels advance on Brega: Rebels claim to have reached oil port just hours after taking Ajdabiya, but Misurata is "besieged" by Gaddafi forces.

Al-Qaeda's Air Force: NATO Considers Broader Role In Libya: Whether NATO will assume the role of "protecting civilians" on the ground -- as mandated by a U.N. Security Council resolution -- remains at issue. A decision on what NATO officials are calling "no-fly plus" could come as early as Sunday after a meeting of NATO ambassadors.

NATO Deal Leaves U.S. Still Commanding Libya Strikes: A NATO decision to take charge of a no-fly zone over Libya does not include conducting air strikes against Muammar Gaddafi's ground forces, a mission that will remain in U.S. hands until a new command deal is reached, Vice Admiral Bill Gortney said on Friday.

UK Has 350 Special Forces In Lybia Assisting Rebels : The Daily Mail can reveal there are an estimated 350 already mounting covert operations. The troops in Libya were drawn from a squadron of SAS and SBS personnel, some who have been in the country for a month and are being re-supplied with water, food and ammunition via airdrops from Cyprus.

Rebels thank France but want 'outside forces' to quit Libya: The insurgents have thanked Nicolas Sarkozy for his armed intervention in Libya, saying "foreign forces" must go.

Delegation: Libya Govt Ready to Discuss ‘Road Map’ to Reform: Abdul Ati al-Obeidi, the regime’s former prime minister and head of state, was among the members of the delegation, and said that the government was willing to negotiate with anyone, and that they were “willing to discuss” the possibility of a free election.

African Union: Libya needs transition period, democratic elections: A Libyan government delegation is meeting in Ethiopia with five African heads of state who are developing a road map to encourage political reform in the North African country.

Libyan woman tells of abuse: Government minders assault woman as she alleges to journalists that she has been raped by Gaddafi troops.

Libya's biggest tribe joins march of reconciliation to Benghazi: "If the west leaves us alone we can solve Libya's problems," said Dagil. "I will march peacefully. My own sister is in Benghazi. She has four children. I am not going to kill her."
John McCain Was In Favor Of Supplying Military Aid To Gaddafi : In August 2009 he led a delegation of senators, including fellow hawks Lindsey Graham and Joe Lieberman, on a trip to visit the Libyan leader in Tripoli. Discussed during the visit was delivery of -- get this -- American military equipment to Gadhafi (a man with American blood on his hands no less).

New Syrian protesters target Baath Party offices: Two reported dead as Baath Party buildings in two towns set on fire as protesters continue to defy security crackdown.

At least 20 killed as Syrian troops open fire on protesters: Rula Amin, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Damascus, said Syrian forces apparently opened fire after protesters started setting fire to a statue of the late president Hafer al-Assad.

Seven Afghan civilians 'killed by NATO occupation forces: – Seven civilians, three of them children, were killed and five others wounded in a NATO airstrike targeting insurgents in restive southern Afghanistan, a local official said Saturday.
13 killed as gunmen target Shias in Pakistan: Thirteen people were killed and 16 others kidnapped in separate attacks by pro-Taliban militants on two convoys of vehicles carrying members of the minority Shia community in the tribal belt of northwest Pakistan today, officials said.
Pakistan to boycott trilateral Afghan talks over US drone attack civilian casualties: “Pakistan has always opposed US drone attacks, and killing of innocent people is totally unacceptable to us,”
Five suspected al Qaeda militants killed in Yemen: Five suspected al Qaeda members were killed in a clash with Yemeni forces when they attacked a security checkpoint in the south of the Arabian Peninsula country, a local official said on Saturday.
Yemeni president says "ready to step down with respect and dignity": Saleh, who has ruled Yemen for 32 years, said he could step down "even within a two hours notice," adding that he would not hand power to rebels fighting the government.
Risk of civil war looms as Yemen's soldiers defect from Saleh regime: A week ago Bassam Ali Qa'id, 26, was loyal to Yemen's hated President Ali Abdullah Saleh, and part of a state security machine which has shot at, tear-gassed and beaten democracy protesters.
Guess What? Report: Al-Qaeda branch in Yemen planning terror strikes, US says: The threat from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), as the affiliate is known, comes at a time when counter-terrorism operations in Yemen have reportedly been disrupted by mass demonstrations against President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has ruled for 32 years.
Al Jazeera shows Iraqi videos to fabricate news about Yemen: The Yemeni government said that among the many false and even fabricated reports that Al Jazeera broadcasts was a video that presented Iraqi torture scenes as official Yemeni security footage. The scenes were filmed in Iraq during Saddam Hussein’s rule and was broadcast by al-Arabiya TV channel in 2007.
Five people killed in bomb attacks in Iraq: Five people were killed and four others were wounded in separate bomb attacks in Baghdad and Iraq's eastern province of Diyala on Saturday, the police said.
Iraq's Maliki says Bahrain may ignite sectarian war: Iraq's Shi'ite prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, said on Friday military intervention by Sunni Arab neighbors in Bahrain could spark a sectarian war in the region and must end.
Shiite protesters rally in two Saudi villages: Demand release of prisoners and withdrawal of troops from Bahrain
Has Bahrain's Opposition Thrown In the Towel?: By all accounts, Bahrain's protests have had the wind knocked out of their sails the past two weeks, as the government systematically shut down the opposition's operations.
Two dead, scores hurt in Jordanian clashes: Two killed and 100 injured in clashes in Amman as kingdom's prime minister warns of chaos and consequences.
Gaza militant groups agree Israel ceasefire, says Hamas: Militant groups in Gaza say they will agree to a ceasefire if Israel stops attacks on the Palestinian territory.
Palestinian rivals hold unity talks: The two-hour talks on Saturday focused on a long-elusive reconciliation between the two groups which have been split since Hamas expelled Abbas' forces from the Gaza Strip in 2007.
European countries want UN, not U.S., to advance Mideast "peace" talks: Britain, France and Germany would like the United Nations and European Union to co-author an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement, say diplomats.
Dan Rather's crew 'humiliated by Israeli security': In a letter to Israeli officials, producer says legendary anchorman's crew held up for hours at security checks, strip-searched before interview with Deputy PM Meridor
Mercenaries 'loot, rape, kill' in Ivory Coast: HUNDREDS of Liberian "mercenaries" have gone on a rampage of rape, murder and looting in the western Ivory Coast region of Guiglo, a virtual lawless zone, the UN refugee agency says.
UN: One million flee Cote d'Ivoire violence: West African country "close to civil war", UN hears, while humanitarian officials warn of "massive displacement".
13 killed in clash with army in north Mexico: A clash between soldiers and armed men left 13 dead in the town of Rio Bravo, on Mexico's northeastern border with the United States, an army statement said Friday.
Mexico drug violence fuels exodus: About 230,000 people have been displaced and about half of them may have taken refuge in the US, says a new study.
Radiation Levels Soar In The Sea Off Japan: Radiation levels are about 1,250 times the legal limit in the ocean near Japan's stricken Fukushima 1 nuclear plant.
Estimated 500,000 march in London against public sector cuts: Police say protest was overwhelmingly peaceful: nine arrests
Stranger than fiction: Sheriff's Raid Valley Home In Tank: West Valley residents in the neighborhood are crying foul after armored vehicles, including a tank, rolled into their neighborhood to make the bust.
Fears rise that Japan could sell off U.S. debt: Some lawmakers and market analysts are expressing rising concerns that a demand for capital by earthquake-ravaged Japan could lead it to sell off some of its huge holdings of U.S.-issued debt, leaving the federal government in an even tighter financial pinch.
Household wealth down 23% in 2 years - Fed: The average American family's household net worth declined 23% between 2007 and 2009, the Federal Reserve said Thursday.