Protests Expand Across Arab Nations

Protesters and security forces clashed in cities around the Middle East and North Africa over the weekend and Iran geared up for the first significant anti-government demonstrations there in a year Monday, as the popular revolt that forced out Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak threatened to spark a new round of uprisings in the region.

In recent weeks as protesters swarmed Egypt and Tunisia, where the longtime ruler also was toppled, scattered large-scale protests have flared elsewhere and other Arab leaders have scrambled to defuse unrest by offering political and economic concessions.

Crowds in Cairo react to word that Egyptian President Hosni
Mubarak has resigned on Friday, Feb. 11, 2011. (MyFox DC)

Many protest efforts had begun to dwindle. But Mubarak's Friday-night resignation appeared to boost momentum for opposition forces around the region and raise the stakes for regimes trying to head them off.

Yemen, Algeria, Bahrain and Jordan all were sites of new protests and clashes. The Palestinian Authority leadership in the West Bank ordered the dismissal of its cabinet, officials said Sunday, after calling new elections Saturday following Mubarak's departure.

In Iran, despite pre-emptive crackdowns and warnings by the government, long-quiet political opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi -- the latter under house arrest -- issued a statement Sunday supporting a protest that already had the backing of labor unions and student activist groups.

The opposition Green Movement -- which sprung up after the contested presidential election in 2009 -- issued a map of protest routes in 35 cities.

They also made available software for Iranians to be able to upload pictures and videos despite slow internet connections. A Facebook page for the protest had more than 52,000 people pledging support and attendance by Sunday. They were being asked to each call 10 people randomly and encourage them to join in.

Already on Sunday night in Tehran, residents were heard chanting "God is great" and "Death to the dictator," according to witnesses and videos posted on YouTube. Meanwhile, the government deployed antiriot police across main squares in Tehran, suggesting the potential for violence.

Source: The Wall Street Journal