Yemeni students call for Arab uprising

YEMENI students have demonstrated in the streets of Sanaa to mark the ousting of Tunisian President Ben Ali and call for Arabs to rise up against their "scared and deceitful leaders", reports Ahram Online.

About 1,000 students marched through the streets of the Yemeni capital of Sanaa on Sunday urging Arabs to rise up against their leaders in the wake of Tunisian strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali's ousting.

The students headed from Sanaa University's campus to the Tunisian embassy flanked by human rights activists.

They chanted: "Liberty's Tunisia, Sanaa salutes you a thousand times."

"Leave before you are toppled," read one banner, without naming Yemen's own President Ali Abdullah Saleh. "Peaceful and democratic change is our aim in building a new Yemen."

In power for the past 32 years, Saleh was re-elected in September 2006 to a seven-year mandate.

A draft amendment of the constitution, under discussion in parliament despite opposition protests, could further stretch the president's tenure by allowing a life-long mandate.

Protests spread to Libya and Jordan

RIOTING has broken out in Libya, as ripples from the Tunisia Revolution spread out across the Arab world.

The confrontation, posted on YouTube, was sparked by anger over lack of housing under the authoritarian Gaddafy regime.

Gaddafy showed his fear of revolt spreading, when he declared in a speech: "I am very pained by what is happening in Tunisia.

"Tunisia now lives in fear ... Families could be raided and slaughtered in their bedrooms and the citizens in the street killed as if it was the Bolshevik or the American revolution."

Meanwhile, more than 5,000 people staged protests across Jordan in "a day of rage" to protest against escalating food prices and unemployment, reports The Guardian.

And Ahram Online adds: "Jordanians will protest Sunday, at 4:00pm in front of the House of Representatives against high prices, the secretary of the Jordanian News Agency, Hala Al-Hadidi, told Ahram Online.

"The protest is organised by the High Coordinating Committee for the parties of the national opposition and call for the resignation of the Prime minister, Samir Al-Refai, according to an opposition website, JFRA news."

Tunisian Revolution can inspire the world

THE INITIAL phase of the remarkable Tunisian Revolution of 2011 is now complete.

Former dictator Ben Ali and his short-lived successor Mohamed Ghannouchi have now both been removed from the presidency and elections will be held within 60 days.

Remnants of the old regime's brutal police have yet to be completely cleared from the streets but it is now just a matter of time.

An excellent account of how the uprising panned out has been compiled by blogger Brian Whitaker at www.al-bab.com.

One of the most important aspects of the revolution is that it has genuinely emerged from below, without foreign backing or formal organisation.

Tunisia under Ben Ali was a police state, with total control of the media and censorship of the internet.

Police roadblocks, patrols and spies were everywhere and dissent was not allowed - and yet people still managed to pull off a successful uprising, partly thanks to the use of online social media.

It is also important to stress that although Tunisia is a Muslim country, this is not an Islamicist revolution.

It is a pro-democracy, pro-freedom, anti-corruption movement - more left libertarian than anything, inspired by trade unions, rap music, Che Guevara and "V for Vendetta".

It is also a very youthful movement - young men and women of the same generation as the students who have taken to the streets in Britain, France and Italy.

The greatest strength shown by the Tunisian rebels has been their amazing courage in the face of a despotic and ruthless regime.

Crowds in Tunis on Friday were shouting "We are not afraid!" even though the police were still shooting people. Sheer numbers and determination won the day.

Once again, the implications of what is happening are enormous and not just for other Arab states.

The sight of an uprising succeeding in the face of such odds is inspiring to all would-be revolutionaries across the globe.

If the Tunisians can do it, then so can we all!

Dictator flees Tunisian people power!

TUNISIAN dictator Ben Ali seems to have been toppled in an historic day for the North African nation - and the world.

The friend of Sarkozy, and the neoliberal powers in general, is reported to have fled as people power prevailed, though there were still warnings on Friday night that his party was clinging to power.

Dramatic events unfolded on Friday January 14, which were watched online around the world via the #sidibouzid hashtag on Twitter.

Ben Ali and his allies had hoped that his speech on Thursday promising reforms and civil liberties would defuse the situation.

Corporate media here were happy to swallow that line, with the UK's pseudo-radical Guardian shamefully reporting "a mood of general celebration in the streets of Tunis" with people apparently chanting "Viva Ben Ali!" and "Thank you Ben Ali!".

This was far from the truth, however, as the world can now plainly see.

Today hundreds of thousands of Tunisians took to the streets to demand that the corrupt dictator Ben Ali stand down.

Still desperate to cling to power and buy himself time, he sacked his whole government and promised parliamentary elections - but it was his blood the people were after.

As tensions mounted outside the Interior Ministry in Tunis, where young protesters climbed on the roof, reports came through that police were firing at the crowds.

It also became clear that the army were to play a key role, with a number of reports of soldiers fraternising with the protesters and declaring themselves on the side of the people.

Ultimately it was their seizure of power from a completely discredited dictator that sealed the success of the revolution.

As a result, it is possible that neoliberal propaganda organs will try to brand the uprising a "coup d'etat" and attack its legitimacy.

But, as things stand, this line of criticism does not appear to be in the least justified.

Historically, revolutions have often been won when the armed forces turn against a hated regime and refuse to impose a tyrant's rule.

A hundred people are thought to have been killed by Ben Ali's state during the last few days as it is - any attempt to enforce his control would have led to bloodshed on an unimaginable scale.

Make no mistake, the Tunisian Revolution of January 14 2011 - if confirmed - will be seen as a major historic event that will shake the very foundations of global corporate rule.

This is just the start!

Tunisia on the brink of revolution

TUNISIA is on the brink of revolution, as the people rise up against poverty, corruption and repression.

Internet rumours abound that president/dictator Ben Ali, a friend of France's hated President Sarkozy, will be forced to cede power and flee the country - it is said his family have already fled.

His Thursday night TV speech to the nation - offering major reforms and a lifting of internet censorship in a bid to cling on to power - was dismissed by many as a "dead man talking" and the words of an habitual liar.

He was clearly trying to buy time and wait for the momentum of the revolt to die down, in a trick used by tyrants throughout history.

And there is no sign that an angry population will take him at his word, with more protests planned for Friday in the wake of much bloodshed on the streets.

Social media online have provided the fuel for the uprising, as the tame Tunisian media and the corporate western media have failed to provide the coverage events undoubtedly deserve.

A constant stream of postings on the situation can be seen at the Blogs of War site.

Among the news reported there:

Scores of people have been killed by security forces - 60 or more in total.

President's brother Sofien Ben Ali's new house in Hammamet (built on stolen land) has been looted & burned.

Giant posters of Ben Ali, to be seen throughout Tunisia, have been ripped down and burned.

Full-scale rebellion sweeps Tunisia

A FULL-SCALE uprising is breaking out in Tunisia, with huge numbers of people out on the streets all over the North African country.

Dictator Ben-Ali is clearly panicking - first he announced a massive jobs creation scheme, the sacking of the interior minister and the release of riot prisoners and then he sent the army out onto the streets and declared a curfew in Tunis.

Events are moving at a furious pace and western media are not providing the coverage the situation merits.

One good source of information is via Twitter under #sidibouzid.

Tweets report protesters being shot - with real bullets - in a growing number of towns as dissent turns into potential revolution.

Says one comment: "Remember that nobody is mobilising the masses in Tunisia. This is a spontaneous movement by people who are so FED UP with it all."

There is news of the army deploying in Msaken, two protesters being killed in Hammamet, bullets fired in Douar Hicher, a clash between police and protesters in Nabeul, a French citizen being killed.

A Freedom for Tunisia website features more than 100 videos of the uprising, including footage of a police station set on fire.

This video also shows scenes of chaos in the capital.

There are further reports that the states of Morocco, Libya and Jordan fear the Tunisian and Algerian rebellion will spread there.

A regularly updated blog can be found here.

Up to 24 dead in Tunisian uprising

UP TO 24 people have reportedly been killed by police in Tunisia during an ongoing uprising over unemployment and a lack of political freedom.

Reports the LA Times: "Tunisia's worst political violence in decades erupted after a 26-year-old street vendor named Mohamed Bouazizi attempted to commit suicide by publicly setting himself on fire because he could not find a job.

"Bouazizi was angered after he was barred from delivering a complaint to the officials of the region after the confiscation of his goods by police for not having a proper vendor license.

"Critics of the government say it is corrupt and uses the threat of Islamists and the need for foreign investment as pretexts for repressive domestic policies that violate basic civil rights. The harsh reaction of the security forces against protesters has further angered the public."