After Gaddafi's forces attacked Ras Lenuf by land, air and sea, Al Jazeera reports that the rebels are "preparing to return to the city."
A R A B I C A ارابيكا
By Kristen Gillespie
FRONT LINES
*After Gaddafi's forces attacked Ras Lenuf by land, air and sea, Al Jazeera reports that the rebels are "preparing to return to the city." The network's correspondent reports that the rebels are entering the city through the east as Gaddafi's forces try to repel them.
BATTLE LINES
*The news website "Ijaz" cites Syrian opposition sources saying that a ship sent by President Bashar Assad to Libya contains weapons and special forces. The headline reads "Sources: Syria supports Gaddafi with weapons and planes to crush the revolution." The article says that "the ship sent from Syria to Libya was full of weapons, ammunition and special forces at the request of Gaddafi." Weapons include rockets, night-vision equipment along with the elite fighting force that operates under the command of Assad's brother, Maher. Libyan rebels in Ras Lenuf say they found Syrian identification documents on pilots they shot down, the article reports.
POLICE LINES
*In the Egyptian port city of Alexandria, hundreds of police officers held a protest to denounce the arrest of 3 officers for shooting to kill protesters during the early uprisings against Mubarak's regime at the end of January, reported Cairo daily Al-Masry Al-Youm. One of the officers, Wael Komy, is accused of killing 37 protesters, while the other two officers, Motaz Askalany and Mohamed Safaan were charged with killing dozens of others. The officers said their colleagues were defending themselves and the police stations during the protests," the paper reported.
OF MARTYRS
*Egyptian opposition icon Wael Ghonim: "They found the body of the martyr Tariq Abdul Taif that has been hidden in the morgue since January 28th. Tariq was martyred by a 4mm bullet in the neck. The blood of martyrs will not be wasted." A picture of Tariq Abdul Taif is here.
OF PRAYERS
*Blogger Wael Abbas tweeted that "the Egyptian army is banning Friday prayers in Tahrir Square!"
OF OMENS
*A picture of an article in a Saudi newspaper with the ominous headline: "Saud al-Faisal: Any foreign hand entering the kingdom will be cut off."
OF BEAUTY
*Music lovers are soaking up this new piece by Iraqi-born master oud player Nasseer Shameh.
March 11, 2011
photo credit: illustir
