Month: April 2011

Tripoli, April 03: Thirteen Libyan rebels were killed in an air strike by NATO-led coalition forces in the country’s eastern city of Brega, Xinhua reported Saturday.

Several rebels were also wounded when NATO planes mistakenly dropped bombs on a rebel convoy, Al-Jazeera reported quoting rebel fighters. The incident occurred when the rebels were trying to recapture the city from the government forces.

The attack has not yet been confirmed by NATO. A NATO spokesman in Brussels said the coalition forces were looking into the reports.

Cairo, April 03: Rebels who plundered Libyan army depots have sold weapons to Al Qaeda militants in the North African country, an Algerian daily said Saturday.

The militant group has already received heavy weaponry and air defence missiles from the Libyan rebels, the L’Expression newspaper said quoting a source from the Algerian security forces.

It added that if Western nations decide to equip the Libyans, these weapons could also come to the hands of Al Qaeda terrorists.

Sana’a, April 03: Yemen’s opposition Saturday told embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh to hand over power to his deputy as part of the five conditions it set for the peaceful transition of power, Xinhua reported.

The opposition coalition Joint Meeting Parties (JMP) proposed five points under which the power will be transferred peacefully from Saleh to Vice President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi, who is a member of Saleh’s ruling General People’s Congress party.

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Gaza, April 03: Hundreds of Palestinians have attended the funeral procession of three people killed by Israeli fighter jets in an overnight airstrike.

The three lost their lives while driving in a car from the town of Khan Yunis to the Deir al Balah refugee camp early Saturday.

Medical sources say a fourth Palestinian has been injured in the incident.

The Israeli strike in southern Gaza created fears of an escalation into an all-out confrontation.

Hamas has identified the victims as members of its Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades.

Islamabad, April 03: A group of unidentified armed men have attacked a NATO supply vehicle transporting fuel destined for US-led forces in Afghanistan and set them on fire in Pakistan’s Baluchistan province.

The gunmen opened fire on a tanker in Khuzdar district, located 360 kilometers (223 miles) south of the provincial capital of Quetta, as it was traveling from the southern port city of Karachi to the Chaman border crossing on the frontier with neighboring Afghanistan.

The driver and his assistant were injured in the shootout, a Media correspondent reported on Saturday.

Misratah, April 03: Revolutionary forces say troops loyal to embattled Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi use Israeli-made weapons to target Misratah.

An opposition spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP on Saturday that Gaddafi forces abandoned Israeli-made rocket-propelled grenades after they failed to recapture Misratah, which is located 150 kilometers (95 miles) east of the Libyan capital city of Tripoli.

He also accused government troops of “crimes against humanity” after they targeted inhabited areas and houses in the coastal city of Misratah.

Damascus, April 03: Syrian security forces have arrested dozens of people just one day after another series of violent demonstrations in the country.

Raids have been carried out in the towns of Dara’a, Douma and Homs. Several people were reportedly killed during protests in those towns on Friday.

Authorities denied allegations that security forces were responsible for the deaths and they blame the violence on armed groups.

The protests came a day after President Bashar al-Assad promised reforms that was the main demand of the protesters.

Mogadishu, April 03: At least 38 people have been killed during heavy clashes between Somali government troops backed by African Union forces and al-Shabab fighters in Mogadishu.

Nearly 17 Somali soldiers died on Saturday after fighting broke out in Mogadishu’s northern districts of Bondhere and Yaqshid.

More than 21 al-Shabab fighters were also killed during the bloody fighting, the Media correspondent in Mogadishu reported.

Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

Jerusalem, April 03: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called on the UN to cancel a report that condemns Tel Aviv for war crimes during its offensive against the Gaza Strip.

Following a Washington Post op-ed by Richard Goldstone, which he has retracted his own report on the Gaza war crimes by Israel; Netanyahu called on the UN to retract the Goldstone Report.

Netanyahu said on Saturday the Goldstone Report should be formally nullified, adding that “Everything we said has been proven to be true.”

Tunis, April 03: Several people have been injured after Tunisian security forces opened fire on a group of protesters in a southwestern city.

About 50 people gathered outside the local government offices in Tozeur, located 450 kilometers (280 miles) southwest of the capital city of Tunis on Saturday and demanded to see the governor.

The people were complaining about the prevalent youth unemployment in the city, Reuters reported.

Clashes broke out after the protesters attacked the government building when the governor refused to meet them.

Tehran, April 03: At least four policemen have been killed and several others wounded in a terrorist attack on a police station in Iran’s western province of Kurdistan.

The incident occurred on Friday night when a group of armed militants reportedly opened fire on a police station in a village near the city of Marivan, Mehr News Agency reported on Saturday.

The overnight attack left five other policemen injured in the village near the Iraqi border.

Manama, April 03: Manama’s Friday Prayers leader has condemned the crackdown on opposition protests, warning the government that its actions will only create hostility.

“When the government adopts the policy of terrorism and violence against its own people, it will create hostility,” Sheikh Isa Qasim said to worshippers during his sermon on Friday.

“This enmity is neither in the interest of the nation nor the government,” he continued. “This will erode the sense of security and threaten it across the country.”

Tehran, April 03: Head of Iran’s Red Crescent Society (IRCS) Abolhassan Faqih says Tehran will send a second humanitarian aid shipment to Libya this week.

“IRCS’s second shipment of humanitarian aid including food and medical supplies will be dispatched to Libya this week,” Faqih said on Saturday.

Faqih added that IRCS sent its first aid cargo comprising of food, medication and also a medical team in March.

Tehran, April 03: Tehran’s ambassador to Damascus says the enemies and arrogant powers want to disintegrate Muslim countries in order to achieve their political objectives.

“In order to achieve their objectives and policies in this regard, the enemies try to make it an issue of democracy … and it is necessary for Muslim countries be vigilant about enemy plans,” Seyyed Ahmad Mousavi said with regards to the developments in Syria and other regional countries.

Tripoli, April 03: Troops loyal to Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi have reportedly fired rockets indiscriminately on the country’s inhabited areas in northwestern city of Misratah.

Gaddafi’s tanks on Saturday targeted inhabited areas and houses in Misratah, which is located 150 kilometers (95 miles) east of the Libyan capital city of Tripoli, AFP reported.

“The tanks targeted inhabited areas and houses in Misratah,” an opposition spokesman told AFP by telephone, calling on the international community to halt the onslaught.