CAIRO/SANAA – Unrest swept across the Middle East on Saturday with reports from Libya saying more than 80 people had been killed in a bloody crackdown, as an anti-government protester was killed in clashes in the Yemeni capital. On the fifth day of an unprecedented challenge to his four-decade regime, Libyan leader Moammar Qaddafi had still made no public comment, although he reportedly appeared at a mass rally of supporters in the capital on Thursday.
After regime opponents used Facebook to mobilise protests, like in neighbouring Egypt, the social networking website was blocked on Saturday and Internet connections were patchy, said Internet users in Tripoli and Benghazi. “Security forces are firing on Libyan citizens and killing scores simply because they’re demanding change and accountability,” said New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW), citing phone interviews with hospital staff and witnesses.
“Hospital sources told HRW that security forces killed 35 people in Benghazi on February 18, almost all with live ammunition,” raising the tally to more than 80. In Yemen, an anti-government protester was killed and seven injured in clashes with supporters of President Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sanaa, a day after five people died in protests against his 32-year rule.
Saleh blamed a “foreign agenda” and a “conspiracy against Yemen, its security and stability” for the string of protests against poverty, unemployment and corruption which have gained momentum since the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.
