Libya protests: Activists call for 'day of anger

Libya protests: Activists call for 'day of
anger






Anti-government activists
in Libya have been using social networking sites to rally support for
protests on what they are describing as a "day of anger".
There were reports of clashes in two cities late on
Wednesday, with two people reported dead in the eastern city of Beyida.
Dozens of people were injured in violent demonstrations on
Tuesday night in the eastern city of Benghazi.
The unrest there followed the detention of an outspoken
government critic.
Pro-democracy protests have recently swept through several
Arab nations, with the presidents of Tunisia and Egypt forced to resign
amid growing unrest.
But this week's demonstrations were the first display of
defiance in Libya, where dissent is rarely tolerated.
Jail massacre
Witnesses say that at one stage up to 2,000 people were
involved in the protests early on Wednesday in Benghazi, which saw a
march on government offices in the city.

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reading the main story “Start Quote


<blockquote>
Down with the enemies, down with them
everywhere; down with the puppets everywhere, the puppets are falling,
the autumn leaves are falling!”</blockquote>
End Quote
Muammar Gaddafi
Libyan leader

• Analysis: Libya not immune to winds of change
  

The protesters are said to have
thrown stones and petrol bombs, and set vehicles alight. Witnesses said
police used rubber bullets and water cannon to disperse them.
The protests reportedly began after the arrest of Fathi
Terbil, who represents relatives of more than 1,000 prisoners allegedly
massacred by security forces in Tripoli's Abu Salim jail in 1996. He was
later said to have been freed.
In a speech broadcast on Wednesday evening, Colonel Gaddafi
made no mention of the unrest but said the "revolutionaries" would
prevail.
"Down with the enemies, down with them everywhere; down with
the puppets everywhere, the puppets are falling, the autumn leaves are
falling!" Mr Gaddafi said.
"The puppets of the USA, the puppets of Zionism are falling."

In a statement issued after the Benghazi clashes, a senior
Libyan official warned that the authorities "will not allow a group of
people to move around at night and play with the security of Libya".
It added: "The clashes last night were between small groups
of people - up to 150. Some outsiders infiltrated that group. They were
trying to corrupt the local legal process which has long been in place.
"We will not permit that at all, and we call on Libyans to
voice their issues through existing channels, even if it is to call for
the downfall of the government," said the official, who was not
identified.
More than 100 members of a banned Islamist militant group
were freed from Abu Salim on Wednesday. It is not clear if the Benghazi
clashes and the release of the inmates were connected.
The European Union, meanwhile, has urged Libya to allow "free
expression".
"We also call for calm and for all violence to be avoided,"
said a spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Baroness Ashton.
'Police state'
Colonel Gaddafi is the Arab world's longest-serving leader,
having ruled oil-rich Libya since a coup in 1969.
He has always insisted that the country is run by a series of
peoples' committees, though most outside observers believe it is a
police state with him firmly in control, the BBC's Jon Leyne reports.
The Middle East has recently seen a wave of protests fuelled
by discontent over unemployment, rising living costs, corruption and
autocratic leaderships.
This began with the overthrow of Tunisia's leader, Zine
al-Abidine Ben Ali, in January. Last week, President Hosni Mubarak of
Egypt resigned.
In recent days there have also been anti-government
demonstrations in Yemen, Bahrain, and Iran




http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12490504