CNN.com Witness: Helicopters fire on Libyan protesters (CNN) -- Helicopters fired at demonstrators and sounds of gunfire rang out Saturday in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, a doctor who witnessed the incident told CNN.
The doctor said dozens of injured people were hospitalized, most suffering from gunshot wounds. "The situation is critical right now," said the doctor who CNN is not identifying for security reasons. "The city is effectively under siege." At least 84 people have been killed by government security forces in three days of protests across Libya, said Human Rights Watch, based on telephone interviews with local hospital staff and witnesses. CNN could not independently confirm information on the escalating unrest in Libya, the most isolated nation in the region. The network has not been permitted to report from Libya and cannot confirm information about the demonstrations. Despite fears of a brutal crackdown, defiant crowds massed in front of Benghazi's main courthouse Friday night to voice discontent over Col. Moammar Gadhafi's 41 years of iron-fisted rule, witnesses told CNN in a phone interview. "This man always makes you afraid of your family, of your friends," said Mofta, who was among the protesters Friday. "He will tell you that his secret police are everywhere," Moftah said. "It's time to break this fear barrier. We reach a point that we dont' care anymore. We want this regime to go away." The pro-Gadhafi online newspaper Quryna reported that 24 people were killed during the Benghazi protests Friday when they tried to attack a military battalion and a security directorate. The newspaper said protesters set afire all the police stations inside the city. Libya is one of several countries in the Middle East and North Africa to face a surge of dissent following the revolts that toppled longtime autocrats in Tunisia and Egypt. Farther east, in al-Baida, thousands of people showed up Friday to bury 13 protesters killed in clashes in recent days, said Mohamed Abdallah of the opposition National Front for the Salvation of Libya, who has been receiving information about Libya from sources there. Plainclothes members of the Revolutionary Committee had reportedly fired at the protesters, Abdallah said. Demonstrations unfolded Friday in other cities as well, he said. The government maintains tight control of the news media and telephone services, and many people expressed fear of talking openly amid what they described as a climate of fear. CNN has been relying on information from protesters, human rights groups and foreign-based Libyan organizations assessing the situation through their sources on the ground. Gadhafi's regime, however, has sought to portray a different picture of events and sent out tacit warnings via mobile phone texts to Libyans planning to make their voices known. "The inappropriate use of telecommunications services contradicts our religion ... our customs ... and our traditions," said a text from the General Communications Body. And Libyan state-run television aired taped images of Gadhafi surrounded by adoring crowds. U.S. President Barack Obama condemned the government crackdowns in Libya, Bahrain and Yemen, which are all embroiled in unrest. "Wherever they are, people have certain universal rights, including the right to peaceful assembly," Obama said. "The United States urges the governments of Bahrain, Libya and Yemen to show restraint in responding to peaceful protests, and to respect the rights of their people." Navi Pillay, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, also condemned the crackdown in Libya and other countries "as illegal and excessively heavy-handed." Libya, like many of its Arab neighbors, is suffering from economic hardship and a lack of political reform. Youth unemployment is high. Gadhafi is acutely aware of popular grievances and has spoken with groups of students, lawyers and journalists in the past few weeks, a source told CNN this week. CNN's Yousuf Basil and Salma Abdelaziz contributed to this report. Links referenced within this article Find this article at: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/02/19/libya.protests/index.html?hpt=T2 Click Here to Print SAVE THIS | EMAIL THIS | Close Uncheck the box to remove the list of links referenced in the article. © 2008 Cable News Network. ------------------------------------ Post message: prole...@egroups.com Subscribe : proletar-subscr...@egroups.com Unsubscribe : proletar-unsubscr...@egroups.com List owner : proletar-ow...@egroups.com Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: proletar-dig...@yahoogroups.com proletar-fullfeatu...@yahoogroups.com <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: proletar-unsubscr...@yahoogroups.com <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
