Citizens speak out. As people continue to stand for government reforms that honor the
principles of democracy, human rights, and greater freedoms, they gather in cities throughout
Bahrain, Egypt, Greece, Libya, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Yemen.
BAHRAIN - In a televised speech Wednesday, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa announced that
after consulting with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, he is forming an independent
committee to launch an intensive investigation into all the events of unrest earlier this
year, including alleged violent suppression of protesters by government forces.
EGYPT - In unrest that began Tuesday and extended into the following day, over 1,000 people
were injured in Cairo's Tahrir Square as police clashed with around 5,000 protesters. The
unrest stemmed from people's frustration over the slow pace of bringing police to justice
for acts of brutality committed during the January-February upheaval as well as protesters'
demands for the former regime's accountability in areas such as corruption. Of the injured,
120 had to be treated at a hospital, with Prime Minister Essam Sharaf promising an investigation
into the violence.
SAUDI ARABIA - Four more women were arrested for driving on Tuesday by religious police
in the country's second largest city of Jeddah, while another woman was arrested that evening.
According to Ms. Eman Al Nafjan, an online author and a member of the coalition Saudi
Women for Driving, all the women were later released. A statement on the coalition's web
site said that such incidents as these would not stop Saudi women from driving in the future.
PAKISTAN - According to a report from the UK-based Financial Times, Pakistani Defense
Minister Chaudhary Ahmed Mukhtar stated that his country is resuming control of operations
at the Shamsi airbase in Baluchistan, with the US being told that no more unmanned drone
attacks would be conducted from the airbase.
OMAN - Fifty-five people in Oman were issued jail sentences on Tuesday, June 28 for their
participation in protests between the months of March and May where they had called for
improved jobs, with the court finding them guilty of robbery, unlawful gathering and
vandalizing government departments.
GREECE - Union members began a peaceful 48-hour strike on Tuesday in continued protest of
efforts by Prime Minister George Papandreou to bring the country out of financial crisis
through budget reductions that would qualify the country for loans from private investors,
the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. The strikes turned violent when a group
of youths began hurling masonry chips torn off of buildings, injuring 20 police. Eight
protesters were also injured in the scuffle that followed, with many more treated for
respiratory difficulties due to tear gas and 18 who were arrested.
YEMEN - On Tuesday, at least three people were killed as Yemeni military forces attacked
several villages near Sana’a belonging to tribes who are calling for President Ali Abdullah
Saleh to step aside. Meanwhile, Yemeni government forces have been making daily attacks on the
armed groups that seized control of three southern towns since the end of May. On Wednesday,
a government airstrike accidentally killed four innocent citizens, injuring at least
12 others in Zinjibar during clashes that in total claimed the lives of 26 Yemeni troops
and 17 armed men.
LIBYA - Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Netherlands,
Luis Moreno-Ocampo, urged Libyan aides to assist in the arrest of leader Colonel Muammar
Gaddafi, saying that this would help more swiftly resolve the nation's crisis.
As we mourn the precious lives lost and the distress of many others, we pray for the strife
in all countries to subside, with citizens everywhere deciding to live in shared safety,
dignity and peace�