A man is carried into a hospital in Mogadishu, Somalia, on Saturday, after being wounded when a mortar hit a residential area.
By the CNN Wire Staff
February 20, 2011 2:00 p.m. EST
(CNN) -- Heavy fighting between Islamist militants and government forces in Somalia's capital has left 18 people dead and dozens wounded, medical officials said Sunday.
"The fighting is huge and is marked by heavy exchange of artillery," said Ali Musa, a head of a Mogadishu ambulance service. Of the 36 reported wounded, 11 were hurt when an artillery shell hit their bus near Mogadishu's Bakara Market.
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The African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia said the fighting centered around attempts to destroy a network of tunnels and trenches that the jihadist movement Al-Shabaab used to move weapons and fighters around the capital. The dead included two peacekeepers and six rebel leaders that the Ugandan-led mission said were linked to al Qaeda.
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"The discovery and closure of this tunnel is a major step forward in the stabilization effort in the city," the Ugandan-led AMISOM mission said in a statement issued Sunday.
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AMISOM said the fighting erupted Saturday as Al-Shabaab tried to retake the tunnel network. Somalia's state-run radio network said 28 rebels were killed in Saturday's clashes.
AMISOM's communique said foreign fighters have effectively taken over Al-Shabaab. It said five of the six rebel leaders killed in the recent fighting came from countries beyond Somalia -- Yemen, Pakistan, India, Kenya and Syria -- while the nationality of the sixth was unknown.
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AMISOM, which supports Somalia's transitional government, said the combined forces now control about 60 percent of the city. But the government has little influence beyond Mogadishu, and Al-Shabaab controls much of southern Somalia.
The horn of Africa nation has not had an effective government since Mohamed Siad Barre was overthrown two decades ago.
Journalist Mohammed Amiin Adow contributed to this report for CNN.
Anti-government rallies have broken out in the Libyan capital Tripoli for the first time during protests against the country's leader, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi.
The sound of gunfire can be heard across the city.
Witnesses say tear gas and live ammunition has been used by the security forces.
There are unconfirmed reports of clashes between pro- and anti-Gaddafi protesters in central Green Square.
Libya has been hit by days of unrest, most of it in the east, where opposition to Col Gaddafi is strongest.
Reports from the eastern city of Benghazi say more than 200 people have died there after the Libyan military used heavy weapons against protesters.
Multiple flashpoints
In Tripoli, protests were reported in four areas of the city late on Sunday.
Mid-East unrest: Libya
Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has led since 1969
Population 6.5m; land area 1.77m sq km
Population with median age of 24.2, and a literacy rate of 88%
Gross national income per head: $12,020 (World Bank 2009)
In the Gourghi area of the city, witnesses said tear gas and live ammunition were used against anti-government protesters. Tear gas was said to have filled the entire neighbourhood, with those sitting outside their homes forced to to go inside.
Correspondents say the spreading of unrest to Tripoli is a significant blow to Col Gaddafi's attempt to contain the protests to the east.
Protesters have been demanding an end to Col Gaddafi's four decades in power, after the success of similar rallies in Egypt and Tunisia.
The brutal suppression of protests in Benghazi has been condemned by the US, UK and other Western nations.
Human Rights Watch says at least 173 people have been killed in Libya since demonstrations began on Wednesday.
Verifying information from Libya has been difficult amid a government clampdown on the internet and media communications.
4 U.S. citizens, including a retired dentist, are believed to have been seized
svquest.com
S/V Quest, reported hijacked by Somali pirates Friday, had four Americans aboard, reportedly including owners Jean and Scott Adam, who were sailing around the world.
msnbc.com staff and news service reports msnbc.com staff and news service reports
updated 2/19/2011 5:53:35 AM ET 2011-02-19T10:53:35
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February 10, 2011
Somali pirates hijacked a yacht with four Americans on board Friday afternoon in the Indian Ocean, officials said.
Omar Jamal, first secretary at the United Nations' Somali mission, identified the yacht as the S/V Quest.
He said Friday that the mission was calling for the immediate release of the hostages and all other captives who were in the hands of the pirates.
The hijacking was first reported by Ecoterra International, which monitors regional maritime activity, according to the French news agency AFP.
Ecoterra said the S/V Quest was seized 275 miles off the coast of Oman.
"S/V Quest was attacked by pirates in the Indian Ocean and the four Americans on board are being held hostage," AFP quoted Ecoterra as saying. "The sailing yacht was reportedly ... en route from India to Mina Raysut, the industrial port of Salalah, Oman," Ecoterra added.
The S/V Quest's owners, Jean and Scott Adam, are seven years into their round-the-world journey from California, said gCaptain, a maritime website.
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Jean Scott is a retired dentist who says on the website, which details their travels, she "has always had an interest in the biological sciences and the natural world around us all (otherwise known as God's creation)."
The New York Times reported that the pirates appeared to be taking the hostages to the Somali shore
Garbage containers are set on fire as Iranian protesters stage an anti-government demonstration on February 14, 2011.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
An Iranian opposition member warns that street protests could lead to civil war
"Nastaran" warns that protests are strengthening Iran's Revolutionary Guard and pro-government militia
"Nastaran" says many Iranians will not accept a religious figure as the new leader of Iran
(CNN) -- An Iranian supporter of the country's opposition movement has warned that continued anti-government street protests could lead to civil war.
The woman, a 34-year-old jewelry designer who lives in Tehran, issued the warning in a series of emailed answers to questions put to her by CNN.
The woman doesn't want her real name revealed due to fear of retribution so has asked that we call her Nastaran.
Does Iran's opposition movement want regime change or just more freedom from this regime? Nastaran:Secularism. [The] separation of religion from politics. As long as religious leaders don't interfere with politics, I don't see a regime change as necessary. However, I doubt that the religious leaders would be willing to accept this. What kind of real change does the opposition movement hope to accomplish with street protests? Nastaran: I completely disagree with the continuation of street protests. We are walking towards a civil war by asking people to pour into the streets and fight with empty hands. The regime will not step back and will kill as many people as it deems necessary to stay in power.
Fight over Iran protest deaths
Civil war is not the way. We need a change in strategy. I think by not changing the strategy and constantly asking people to get into the streets (especially in the same location) we are empowering Sepah (Iran's Revolutionary Guard) and the Basij (Pro-government militia). It is evident when you go on the streets during the protests that they have learned how to organize and mobilize better. Further, we are helping them to expand their army.
How afraid are you of Iran's security forces and their threats? Nastaran:Extremely scared!! They are merciless and will do anything in the name of religion. The legal framework of Iran is also being ignored so they can accuse you of anything and perhaps kill you. Are Mir Hossein Moussavi and Mehdi Karrubi the leaders of Iran's opposition movement? Nastaran:To me they are not. To me they became leaders through people's anger and dissatisfaction with the regime. However, I believe that every movement and uprising requires a leader and at this point in time there is no one better than them.
The regime will not step back and will kill as many people as it deems necessary to stay in power.
I do not accept them as leaders because I generally disagree with their ideologies. Further, I think they are not the right leaders for a large portion of our population. Many Iranians will always believe that these guys are part of the system and will refuse to support them.
Many Iranians will not accept a religious figure, some one with a turban on their head as a leader, given their experience in the past 30 years.
What does Iran's opposition movement want from America right now? What do you want President Obama to do? Nastaran: Direct interference [from] America is not helpful. Iranians are prone to conspiracy theories and history has proven that American interference is not to our benefit. 28 Mordad is a prime example [the 1953 U.S.-backed coup that overthrew Iran's democratically elected government].
As a result, the masses tend to not want to follow any movement that is initiated or assisted by Americans. Their help should be indirect, but their help can be valuable. An example would be creating infrastructure for Iranians to more freely communicate, have access to information and spread the information.
Additionally, appropriate sanctions can be useful also. However, they should be the type of sanctions that the regime wouldn't be able to blame for the people's unhappiness and poverty. I think [that] until people really feel hungry and see that different economic and foreign policies will mean more comfortable lives, they won't join any kind of a movement. Intelligent sanctions can result in the latter.
Amateur video posted online purportedly shows unrest in Libya
BBC.,19 February 2011Last updated at 09:14 GMT
The number of people killed in three days of protests in Libya has risen to 84, according to the New York-based group Human Rights Watch.
The main focus of the demonstrations against Col Muammar Gaddafi's 42-year-old rule has been the second city, Benghazi, where one hospital reported 35 deaths on Friday.
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Protests are said to be continuing. State media have warned of retaliation.
Websites have been blocked and electricity shut off in some areas.
Media restrictions make it difficult to verify reports independently but the BBC has confirmed that websites including Facebook and al-Jazeera Arabic were blocked.
Security forces opened fire in Benghazi on Friday when protesters approached a compound used by Col Gaddafi when he visits the city, which is about 1,000 km (600 miles) from the capital Tripoli, eyewitnesses say.
Mid-East unrest: Libya
Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has led since 1969
Population 6.5m; land area 1.77m sq km
Population with median age of 24.2, and a literacy rate of 88%
Gross national income per head: $12,020 (World Bank 2009)
The city's al-Jala hospital received the bodies of 35 people killed in the shooting, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW) and media reports.
In a statement on its website, HRW says there were demonstrations in at least four other eastern cities on Friday - al-Bayda, Ajdabiya, Zawiya, and Darnah - after security forces shot dead a number of protesters in the previous days.
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A senior hospital official told the group: "We put out a call to all the doctors in Benghazi to come to the hospital and for everyone to contribute blood because I've never seen anything like this before."
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A Benghazi resident told Reuters news agency on Saturday that many protesters were still standing in front of the court building. "They have decided they are not going to move," he said.
In al-Bayda, video footage showed bloodstained bodies in a mortuary and protesters torching a municipal building and demolishing a statue of Col Gaddafi's Green book.
In Darnah, east of al-Bayda, police stations are said to have been evacuated.
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Oea newspaper, owned by one of Col Gaddafi's sons, reported that demonstrators had lynched two policemen in the city.
One protester told the BBC that soldiers had switched sides in some areas and joined the demonstrations.
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"The soldiers say we are citizens of this country and we cannot fight our citizens," he said.
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'Red lines'
No major disturbances have been reported in the capital Tripoli, where pro-Gaddafi supporters have been demonstrating.
Amid the crackdown, the semi-independent Quryna newspaper reported that the government would replace many state executives and decentralise and restructure the government.
It was unclear whether the political move was in response to growing unrest.
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Earlier, the pro-government Al-Zahf Al-Akhdar newspaper threatened that the authorities would "violently and thunderously respond" to the protests.
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"The people's power, the Jamahiriya [system of rule], the revolution, and Colonel Gaddafi are all red lines and those who try to cross or come near these lines are suicidal and playing with fire," it said.
Col Gaddafi is the Arab world's longest-serving leader, having ruled oil-rich Libya since a coup in 1969.
Libya is one of several Arab countries to have experienced pro-democracy demonstrations since the fall of long-time Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January. Egypt's Hosni Mubarak was forced from power on 11 February.
The British Foreign Office is now advising UK citizens against all but essential travel to Benghazi, Ajdabiya, al-Bayda, al-Marj, Darnah, Ajdabiya, Tobruk and areas bordering Sudan, Chad, Niger and Algeria.
