Dijel guna kad kredit isteri

Oleh Mohd Fauzi Abdullah
fauzie@hmetro.com.my

KUANTAN: Gara-gara menggunakan kad kredit isteri tanpa kebenaran, seorang warga emas dijatuhkan hukuman enam bulan penjara dan denda RM4,000 oleh Mahkamah Majistret, di sini, semalam, selepas mengaku bersalah terhadap dua pertuduhan membabitkan kesalahan berkenaan.

Majistret Adibah Abdul Kadir menjatuhkan hukuman berkenaan terhadap Khalid Ismail, 60, dari Beserah, dekat sini, selepas tertuduh mengaku bersalah melakukan perbuatan itu sejurus kertas pertuduhan dibacakan kepadanya.

Mengikut pertuduhan pertama, tertuduh yang juga seorang pesara didapati dengan curang menggunakan kad kredit kepunyaan isterinya yang berusia 60 tahun untuk kegunaan sendiri di mana dia membeli sebentuk cincin emas berharga RM530 tanpa kebenaran wanita berkenaan pada jam 12.04 tengah hari 17 Januari lalu, di sebuah kedai emas dan permata di tingkat bawah Pasaraya Kuantan Parade, di sini.

Mengikut pertuduhan kedua, Khalid didapati dengan curang menggunakan kad kredit kepunyaan isterinya untuk kegunaan sendiri di tempat sama pada jam 11.06 pagi 22 Januari lalu, dengan membeli seutas rantai leher emas berharga RM920 tanpa kebenaran wanita terbabit.

Bagi kedua-dua kesalahan itu, tertuduh didakwa mengikut Seksyen 403 Kanun Keseksaan yang jika sabit kesalahan dia boleh dikenakan hukuman penjara sehingga lima tahun serta sebat dan denda bagi setiap pertuduhan.

Adibah menjatuhkan hukuman enam bulan penjara dan denda RM2,000 bagi setiap pertuduhan, bagaimanapun beliau mengarahkan hukuman berkenaan dijalankan serentak.

Terdahulu dalam rayuannya, tertuduh memberitahu mahkamah dia melakukan perbuatan itu kerana berdepan konflik kewangan keluarga selain tidak bekerja selepas bersara.

“Saya perlukan wang untuk perbelanjaan lain seperti membayar bil elektrik, air, isi minyak motosikal dan sebagainya,” katanya.

Tertuduh turut memaklumkan isterinya tidak memberikan wang kepadanya dan dia memerlukan wang untuk menampung perbelanjaan perubatan akibat penyakit lelah dihidapinya.

“Saya hendak beli ubat pun tiada duit,” katanya yang turut merayu mahkamah meringankan hukuman ke atasnya.

Bagaimanapun, Pegawai Pendakwa Cif Inspektor Mohamad Azman Ariffin, mahu mahkamah menjatuhkan hukuman setimpal terhadap kesalahan dilakukan tertuduh sebagai pengajaran kepada masyarakat.

http://www.hmetro.com.my/articles/Dijelgunakadkreditisteri/Article

Hosni dilihat bersarapan pagi

HOSNI MUBARAK

SHARM EL SHEIKH - Bekas presiden Mesir, Hosni Mubarak yang dilaporkan sakit dilihat bersarapan pagi di sebuah pantai di sini kelmarin, lapor sebuah akhbar semalam.

Satu sumber berpengaruh memberitahu stesen televisyen ABC, Hosni kini berada di resort miliknya di sini dengan ditemani oleh dua anak lelakinya, Gamal dan Alaa.

Kedua-dua isteri dan anak lelaki mereka, bagaimanapun telah meninggalkan Mesir.

Sumber itu berkata, memang benar Hosni, 82, menghadapi masalah kesihatan kerana doktor peribadinya turut menemaninya di sini.

Namun, kata sumber itu, Hosni yang meletak jawatan selepas memerintah Mesir hampir 30 tahun dilihat sihat bersarapan pagi di tepi pantai.

Kebimbangan mengenai kesihatan pemimpin itu timbul pada minggu lalu selepas terdapat laporan bahawa beliau berada dalam keadaan koma setelah meletak jawatan.

Sementara itu, Majlis Tertinggi Angkatan Tentera yang mengambil alih pentadbiran Mesir menyatakan, ia terkejut dengan gejala rasuah yang begitu berleluasa dalam pentadbiran Hosni sebelum ini.

Tidak lama selepas mengambil alih kuasa, pihak tentera telah meminta aset beberapa pegawai tertinggi pentadbiran negara dibekukan sehingga siasatan yang dilakukan terhadap mereka selesai dilakukan. - Agensi

http://www.kosmo.com.my/kosmo/content.asp?y=2011&dt=0218&pub=Kosmo&sec=Dunia&pg=du_02.htm

Yemen bergolak akibat tunjuk perasaan

SEJUMLAH penunjuk perasaan propemerintah membaling batu ke arah para penunjuk perasaan yang menentang pemerintahan Presiden Ali Abdullah Saleh di Sanaa, Yemen semalam.

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SANAA - Pertempuran sengit antara para penunjuk perasaan yang menyokong dan menentang pemerintah di sini menyebabkan sekurang-sekurangnya 40 orang cedera semalam manakala tentera dikerahkan ke bandar pelabuhan Aden, selatan negara itu bagi mengawal ketenteraman.

Sekitar 2,000 orang penunjuk perasaan, kebanyakannya pelajar, meninggalkan Universiti Sanaa dan menuju ke Dataran Pembebasan di sini apabila mereka bertembung dengan penyokong-penyokong pemerintah sekali gus mencetuskan pertempuran yang masuk hari ketujuh semalam.

Kumpulan penunjuk perasaan yang setia kepada Presiden Ali Abdullah Saleh berhimpun dan menunggu berhampiran universiti itu sejak pagi semalam untuk menyerang kumpulan penunjuk perasaan antipemerintah dengan cota dan batu.

Para penunjuk perasaan yang melaungkan slogan seperti rakyat mahu menumbangkan pemerintah bertindak balas dengan membaling batu ke arah penyokong presiden.

Seorang wartawan di sini berkata, polis kemudian campur tangan dengan melepaskan tembakan amaran untuk memisahkan kedua-dua belah pihak tetapi berundur selepas pertempuran bertambah sengit.

Menurutnya, seramai 15 daripada mereka yang cedera merupakan penunjuk perasaan manakala bakinya penyokong pemerintah.

Dalam perkembangan berkaitan, seorang pegawai tempatan berkata, pertempuran sengit antara penunjuk perasaan dan pihak polis di bandar Aden kelmarin menyebabkan tentera dihantar ke lokasi tersebut.

PARA penentang pemerintah (membelakangi kamera) membaling batu ke arah kumpulan penyokong kerajaan di Sanna, Yemen semalam.

Menurutnya, dua terbunuh dalam pertempuran itu.

Kejadian di Yemen itu berlaku akibat kesan daripada tunjuk perasaan besar-besaran yang berlaku di Tunisia dan Mesir.

Tunjuk perasaan itu juga berlaku akibat kemarahan rakyat yang berpunca daripada masalah kemiskinan dan pengangguran.

Presiden Yemen berjanji untuk tidak bertanding dalam pilihan raya semula pada 2013 atau cuba menjadikan seorang anak lelakinya sebagai pengganti.

Negara itu merupakan sekutu kuat Amerika Syarikat dalam perjuangan untuk menentang kumpulan Al-Qaeda yang dipimpin oleh Osama bin Laden.

Kawasan sempadan Yemen yang berjiran dengan Arab Saudi kerap dikaitkan dengan kumpulan-kumpulan pengganas. - Agensi

http://www.kosmo.com.my/kosmo/content.asp?y=2011&dt=0218&pub=Kosmo&sec=Dunia&pg=du_01.htm

Tentera kawal ibu kota Bahrain

SEJUMLAH penunjuk perasaan antikerajaan berlari selepas dikejar anggota-anggota polis di Manama semalam.

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MANAMA - Tentera Bahrain mengerahkan sejumlah kereta kebal ke pusat bandar raya di sini dan berikrar untuk mengembalikan keamanan selepas serbuan ganas polis terhadap para penunjuk perasaan antipemerintah menyebabkan empat orang maut manakala puluhan lagi cedera.

Tunjuk perasaan yang diadakan itu bertujuan untuk meminta kuasa raja dilonggarkan selepas mereka melihat kejayaan tunjuk perasaan di Mesir pada minggu lalu.

Dalam tunjuk perasaan di Mesir, Hosni Mubarak bertindak meletakkan jawatan selepas sejuta penunjuk perasaan berhimpun menuntut beliau berundur selepas hampir 29 tahun memerintah.

Marah dengan tindakan kejam polis, sebuah kumpulan pembangkang Syiah terbesar di Bahrain, Persatuan Persetujuan Kebangsaan Islam menyatakan, ia merancang untuk bertindak menarik diri dari parlimen Bahrain.

Sejumlah penunjuk perasaan yang berang pula berhimpun di luar sebuah hospital, tempat mangsa-mangsa sedang dirawat sambil melaungkan slogan antipemerintah.

Semalam, anggota-anggota polis pencegah rusuhan menyerbu Dataran Pearl, di sini yang merupakan tempat tunjuk perasaan itu diadakan.

Anggota-anggota polis turut melepaskan tembakan peluru getah dan gas pemedih mata.

Kejadian tersebut menyebabkan beratus-ratus penunjuk perasaan lari untuk menyelamatkan diri.

Beberapa anggota pembangkang dan saksi berkata, sekitar 95 anggota penunjuk perasaan cedera dalam operasi tersebut yang dilancarkan tanpa amaran sekitar pukul 3 pagi waktu tempatan.

"Mereka (anggota-anggota polis) menyerang dataran tersebut semasa ratusan orang sedang tidur dalam khemah-khemah," kata seorang saksi, Fadel Ahmad, 37.

Semasa operasi tersebut, beberapa letupan dan siren ambulans boleh didengari beberapa ratus meter dari dataran itu yang kini ditutup.

Penunjuk-penunjuk perasaan melarikan diri dengan dikejar pasukan keselamatan manakala, sebuah helikopter berlegar-legar untuk melakukan pemantauan.

Tunjuk perasaan di Bahrain yang disertai beribu-ribu orang adalah kesan demonstrasi di Mesir dan Tunisia baru-baru ini.

Para penunjuk perasaan itu berhimpun di dataran berkenaan sejak Selasa lalu selepas polis membunuh dua anggota penunjuk perasaan dalam satu tunjuk perasaan antikerajaan. - Agensi

http://www.kosmo.com.my/kosmo/content.asp?y=2011&dt=0218&pub=Kosmo&sec=Dunia&pg=du_03.htm

Sudah 249 hari Belgium tiada kerajaan

BRUSSELS - Rakyat Belgium meraikan hari ke-249 tanpa kerajaan semalam dan menggangapnya sebagai satu rekod dunia.

"Akhirnya, kita (Belgium) ialah juara dunia" kata tajuk utama sebuah akhbar tempatan, De Standaardsemalam.

Keadaan itu berlaku selepas keputusan pilihan raya parlimen pada 13 Jun 2010 menunjukkan tiada parti yang memperoleh majoriti kukuh untuk membentuk kerajaan.

Parti-parti politik utama enggan bertolak ansur bagi membentuk sebuah kerajaan campuran.

Rundingan untuk memecah kebuntuan tersebut masih berjalan manakala pentadbiran negara kini dilaksanakan sebuah kerajaan sementara diketuai oleh Menteri Kewangan, Didier Reynders yang dilantik oleh pemerintah Belgium, Raja Albert. - Agensi

http://www.kosmo.com.my/kosmo/content.asp?y=2011&dt=0218&pub=Kosmo&sec=Dunia&pg=du_06.htm

Gelombang politik Asia Barat

Oleh ROSMALINA ABD. KADIR
rosmalina.kadir@kosmo.com.my

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SIAPAKAH pemimpin yang akan digulingkan selepas Hosni Mubarak? Mampukah rakyat Iran menggugat pemerintahan Presiden Mahmoud Ahmadinejad atau berjayakah Yemen menuntut pembaharuan politik sekali gus peletakan jawatan Presiden Ali Abdullah Saleh?

Teka-teki kini bermain di fikiran masyarakat dunia mengenai kepincangan pemerintahan di negara-negara di Asia Barat. Ternyata, rakyatnya enggan menunggu lama untuk memperjuangkan hak mereka sebagai rakyat yang ditindas selama ini.

Penggulingan Hosni Mubarak hasil demonstrasi pembangkang itu ternyata bukan penutup tirai pemberontakan di Mesir. Ibarat tsunami, gelombangnya telah menghempas kerusi-kerusi pemerintahan pemimpin negara Asia Barat sehingga mereka tidak lagi dapat duduk dengan selesa.

Pemberontakan kumpulan pembangkang di Mesir adalah pencetus yang membangkitkan suara rakyat di negara-negara Asia Barat yang selama ini membatu. Mesir menjadi teladan kepada jiran-jirannya di sekiranya mereka mahu pembaharuan berlaku dengan pantas.

Di Teheran, Iran, ketua pembangkangnya, Mahdi Karroubi berkata, dia sanggup membayar apa juga harga bagi membawa perubahan demoktarik kepada negara berkenaan menerusi demonstrasi jalanan yang diketuainya.

Tindakan yang mungkin membawa Karroubi ke tali gantung itu bukan sahaja bagi menyokong pemberontakan yang dilancarkan oleh penduduk di Mesir tetapi untuk membuka pekung pemerintahan pemimpin negara berkenaan, Presiden Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

AHMADINEJAD turut terkena tempias gelombang pembangkang di Iran.

Dalam kejadian sama yang membabitkan beribu-ribu aktivis pembangkang Iran, dua individu maut sementara beberapa yang lain mengalami kecederaan manakala berpuluh-puluh penunjuk perasaan telah ditahan kerana menyertai protes haram yang bertujuan menguji kekuatan kumpulan reformis di republik Islam tersebut.

Laungan Allahu Akbar kedengaran dari atas bumbung beberapa bangunan di Teheran dalam mengenang kejadian protes yang dilancarkan ke atas Presiden Mahmoud Ahmadinejad pada 2009.

Tunjuk perasaan jalanan besar-besaran yang berlarutan selama sebulan itu dan mengakibatkan lapan orang maut, selain beberapa penangkapan serta pelaksanaan hukuman mati.

Laporan Fars mengenai keganasan penunjuk perasaan itu jelas menggambarkan pendirian keras pihak berkuasa untuk membendung kebangkitan semula pihak pembangkang.

Penunjuk perasaan

"Dua individu ditembak mati oleh penunjuk perasaan yang mengadakan perhimpunan di Teheran, manakala beberapa yang lain mengalami kecederaan," lapor Fars tanpa memberikan butiran terperinci.

Bagaimanapun, pendirian pihak berkuasa sehingga menyebabkan kematian itu hanya menyemarakkan lagi semangat aktivis pembangkang yang mahu kemenangan seperti dinikmati pemberontak Mesir turut berlaku di Iran.

Beberapa penunjuk perasaan di Iran melaungkan, 'Mati kepada diktator' semasa protes yang berlarutan di sesetengah kawasan sehingga lewat malam itu.

Gelombang pemberontakan yang turut memasuki Bahrain bagi mencabar pemerintahnya di negara Teluk yang merupakan sekutu penting Barat selain menempatkan Armada kelima tentera laut Amerika Syarikat (AS).

Kemiskinan dan kadar pengangguran yang tinggi telah memberi tekanan kepada rakyat Bahrain yang merupakan pengikut mazhab Syiah.

"Rakyat mahu rejim digulingkan," laung penunjuk perasaan sambil menumbuk dada mereka yang melambangkan simbol pengorbanan dan kesedihan.

"Kami menuntut hak kami secara aman. Saya yakin kehadiran kami dalam jumlah besar akan membolehkan hasrat kami tercapai," kata seorang pelajar universiti, Bakr Akil, 20, yang memakai kain selimut berlumuran dakwat merah dalam satu demonstrasi.

Penunjuk perasaan mendakwa pemerintah dari puak Sunah yang memerintah negara tersebut telah mengenepikan mereka daripada mendapat kemudahan perumahan, penjagaan kesihatan dan pekerjaan dalam sektor awam.

Ketika ini, penunjuk perasaan mahu Perdana Menteri, Sheikh Khalifa Salam al-Khalifa berundur berbanding Raja Hamad Isa al-Khalifa yang mempunyai kata putus dalam politik.

Terdahulu, kekerasan pihak berkuasa telah menyebabkan kehilangan nyawa seorang. Ali Abdulhadi Mushaima, 21 menjadi korban pertama selepas demonstrasi besar-besaran yang diadakan di Teluk selepas kejatuhan Presiden Hosni Mubarak di Mesir.

Ali terbunuh selepas ditembak semasa pertempuran dengan pasukan keselamatan yang cuba menyekat protes Hari Kemarahan bagi menuntut kebebasan dan hak politik lebih luas daripada kerabat diraja yang memerintah Bahrain.

RAKYAT Bahrain terutama penyokong Syiah mengibarkan bendera kebangsaan mereka di Dataran Pearl, Manama.

Bantahan meningkat

Sekurang-kurangnya 25 orang cedera dalam pertempuran itu, dua daripada mereka dilaporkan dalam keadaan kritikal selepas terkena tembakan.

Bagaimanapun, seorang lagi pemuda maut selepas menyertai perhimpunan perarakan jenazah Ali dalam protes besar-besaran awal minggu ini. Dia meninggal dunia akibat terkena tembakan peluru penabur yang dilepaskan semasa kekecohan berlaku.

Kematian lelaki itu bakal meningkatkan protes dan hanya memarakkan api kebencian kepada pemerintah di Bahrain.

Bahrain yang majoriti rakyatnya bermazhab Syiah diperintah oleh kerabat diraja Sunah pimpinan Raja Hamad Al-Khalifa yang menguasai jawatan Perdana Menteri dan kementerian-kementerian penting.

Pertempuran di Yemen juga adalah bagi menuntut pembaharuan politik dan peletakan jawatan Presiden Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Di kalangan 23 juta rakyat di negara itu, 40 peratus hidup dengan pendapatan kurang daripada AS$2 (RM6.20) sehari, satu pertiga mengalami kelaparan kronik dan satu dalam dua orang memiliki senjata api.

"Revolusi lebih mudah berlaku di Yemen berbanding di Mesir kerana kemiskinan di sini lebih teruk dan lebih ramai rakyat yang kelaparan," kata Tawakul Karman yang merupakan pengerusi Wartawan Wanita Tanpa Rantai.

Penunjuk perasaan yang kebanyakannya pelajar universiti, peguam dan aktivis hak asasi itu melaungkan slogan mengutuk Saleh dan samseng-samseng presiden itu.

"Rakyat mahu menggulingkan rejim," laung mereka yang mengulangi slogan penunjuk perasaan di Mesir. Sepasukan kecil polis cuba menyuraikan penunjuk perasaan dengan gas pemedih mata dan belantan tetapi mereka meneruskan perarakan dari Universiti Sanaa menuju ke pusat bandar.

Ramai anggota polis dan hampir 2,000 penyokong kerajaan menantikan penunjuk perasaan tersebut di pusat bandar Sanaa. Tetapi, demonstrasi itu dijangka bertambah besar apabila ratusan lagi pelajar dan aktivis menyertai perarakan di ibu kota ini.

Awal minggu ini, batu dilontar dan belantan diayunkan di tengah Sanaa apabila penunjuk perasaan bertempur dengan polis dan penyokong Saleh. Pertempuran antara polis dengan beribu-ribu penunjuk perasaan juga tercetus di bandar Taez, selatan Sanaa semalam, menyebabkan kecederaan.

Sementara itu, Presiden Barack Obama dalam pendiriannya ke atas pemberontakan yang berlaku di negara-negara Asia Barat memberitahu, beliau percaya bahawa pemilikan kuasa se cara paksaan tidak akan bertahan lama, merujuk kepada pemerintahan Mesir di bawah Hosni Mubarak yang tidak direstui sebahagian rakyatnya.

Kuasa moral

Beliau berkata, pengajaran yang dapat diambil oleh semua negara ialah, mereka hanya dapat melihat perubahan yang berkekalan dan mendapat sokongan dalaman dan anta rabangsa, apabila ia datang melalui kuasa moral. Beliau bagaimanapun berdiam diri mengenai siapa yang harus mengambil alih pemerintahan Mesir serta perubahan yang harus dilakukan.

Dalam pada itu, pergolakan yang berlaku di negara-negara Asia Barat telah menimbulkan kebimbangan Israel seandainya ia mampu memandu agenda anti-Israel oleh rakyat Mesir. Jurucakap AS John Boehner memberi jaminan bahawa mereka akan berdiri di belakang Israel yang di anggap berkongsi nilai yang sama sekali gus mementang musuh sama dalam bentuk keganasan ekstrem.

"Orang-orang Israel telah banyak berkorban demi keamanan dan kestabilan. Dengan perubahan yang pantas berlaku di Asia Barat, AS akan bergabung dengan Israel bagi mengekalkan keamanan dan kestabilan di rantau berke naan," katanya.

Pensyarah Sains Politik Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Profesor Madya Dr. Mohamad Agus Yusoff ketika dihubungi berkata, kerajaan yang gagal memenuhi tuntutan asas rakyatnya sebaiknya turun daripada takhta pemerintahan supaya dapat digantikan dengan kerajaan baru yang lebih baik.

"Negara-negara Asia Barat yang selama ini berdiam diri mendapat ilham selepas kejatuhan Hosni Mubarak untuk menuntut hak-hak mereka yang selama ini diabaikan oleh pemerintah negara setelah sekian lama.

KEMISKINAN di Yemen menyebabkan rakyatnya bangkit untuk menuntut perubahan.

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"Selagi tuntutan mereka tidak dipenuhi, pemberontakan tidak akan berakhir tetapi merebak dengan pantas bukan sahaja di negara-negara Asia Barat tetapi juga di negara-negara lain seperti Algeria," katanya.

Menurut beliau, penduduk di negara terbabit berhadapan masalah luar biasa sejak sekian lama terutama jurang taraf hidup yang terlalu luas. Dengan erti kata lain, ada masyarakat kaya yang semakin kaya dan masyarakat yang hidup miskin dan semakin melarat.

"Masalah kemiskinan tegar, pengangguran yang tinggi, pendapatan yang terlalu rendah telah mendesak golongan yang selama ini ditindas dan hak mereka dinafikan bangkit menuntut keadilan serta tidak peduli lagi dengan ancaman yang bakal dihadapi," katanya.

Tambah Agus, perkara paling mustahak yang dituntut golongan berkenaan ialah perubahan yakni kehidupan yang lebih selesa dan ruang untuk terlibat dalam politik.

"Dua perkara ini adalah asas yang dapat menyelamatkan sesebuah kerajaan daripada digulingkan. Selagi perut rakyat dijaga, tiada yang hidup dalam kelaparan selagi itu kerajaan akan selamat," katanya.

Selain itu, masalah korupsi tidak dapat dielakkan sekiranya pemerintah yang sama menduduki kerusi pemerintahan melebihi dua penggal.

"Pemerintah tidak seharusnya meneraju negara melebihi dua penggal. Sekiranya mereka masih berkuasa melebihi sepuluh tahun, akan berlaku masalah rasuah secara berleluasa," katanya.

http://www.kosmo.com.my/kosmo/content.asp?y=2011&dt=0218&pub=Kosmo&sec=Rencana_Utama&pg=ru_01.htm

Bahrain forces fire tear gas on protest, 20 hurt

AP/Hasan Jamali

Bahraini worshipers react with tears against the regime in the Shiite Muslim village of Diraz, Bahrain. More photos »

AP – Friends and relatives chant anti-government slogans during the funeral of Mahmoud Maki Abu Taki, 22, …

By HADEEL AL-SHALCHI, Associated Press Hadeel Al-shalchi, Associated Press – 32 mins ago

MANAMA, Bahrain – Soldiers fired tear gas and shot heavy weapons into the air as thousands of protest marchers defied a government ban Friday and streamed toward the landmark square that had been the symbolic center of the uprising against the Gulf nation's leaders.

Hospital officials said at least 20 people were injured, some seriously. Ambulance sirens were heard throughout central Manama a day after riot police swept through the protest encampment in Pearl Square, killing at least five people and razing the tents and makeshift shelters that were inspired by the demonstrators in Cairo's Tahrir Square.

An Associated Press cameraman saw army units shooting anti-aircraft weapons, fitted on top of armored personnel carriers, above the protesters in apparent warning shots and attempts to drive them back from security cordons about 200 yards (200 meters) from the square. Marchers fled, some slipping on pools of blood in the street.

One marcher claimed live ammunition was used against protesters, who chanted: "To the square!"

"People started running in all directions and bullets were flying," said Ali al-Haji, a 27-year-old bank clerk. "I saw people getting shot in the legs, chest and one man was bleeding from his head."

In the past, security forces had mostly used rubber bullets.

The clash came hours after funeral mourners and worshippers at Friday prayers called for the toppling of the Western-allied monarchy in the tiny island nation that is home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, the centerpiece of the Pentagon's efforts to confront Iranian military influence in the region.

The White House has expressed "strong displeasure" about the rising tensions in Bahrain.

Click image to see photos of protests in Bahrain

AFP/Joseph Eid

The cries against the king and his inner circle — at a main Shiite mosque and at burials for those killed in Thursday's crushing attack — reflect a sharp escalation of the political uprising, which began with calls to weaken the Sunni monarchy's power and address claims of discrimination against the Shiite majority.

The mood, however, has turned toward defiance of the entire ruling system after the brutal crackdown on a protest encampment in Bahrain's capital, Manama, which put the nation under emergency-style footing with military forces in key areas and checkpoints on main roads.

"The regime has broken something inside of me. ... All of these people gathered today have had something broken in them," said Ahmed Makki Abu Taki at the funeral for his 23-year-old brother, Mahmoud, who was killed in the pre-dawn sweep through Pearl Square. "We used to demand for the prime minister to step down, but now our demand is for the ruling family to get out."

At a Shiite mosque in the village of Diraz, an anti-government hotbed, imam Isa Qassim called the Pearl Square assault a "massacre" and thousands of worshippers chanted: "The regime must go."

In a sign of Bahrain's deep divisions, government loyalists filled Manama's Grand Mosque to hear words of support for the monarchy and take part in a post-sermon march protected by security forces. Many arrived with Bahraini flags draped over the traditional white robes worn by Gulf men. Portraits of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa were distributed.

"We must protect our country," said Adnan al-Qattan, the cleric leading prayers. "We are living in dangerous times."

He denounced attempts to "open the doors to evil and foreign influences" — an apparent reference to suspicions that Shiite powerhouse Iran could take advantages of any gains by Bahrain's Shiites, who account for about 70 percent of the population.

The pro-government gathering had many nonnative Bahrainis, including South Asians and Sunni Arabs from around the region. Shiite have long complained of policies giving Sunnis citizenship and jobs, including posts in security forces, to offset the Shiite majority.

Outside a Shiite village mosque, several thousand mourners gathered to bury three of the men killed in the crackdown. The first body, covered in black velvet, was passed hand to hand toward a grave as it was being dug.

Amid the Shiite funeral rites, many chanted for the removal of the king and the entire Sunni dynasty that has ruled for more than two centuries in Bahrain — the first nation in the Gulf to feel the pressure for changes sweeping the Arab world.

"Our demands were peaceful and simple at first. We wanted the prime minister to step down,' Mohamed Ali, a 40-year-old civil servant, said as he choked back tears. "Now the demands are harsher and have reached the pinnacle of the pyramid. We want the whole government to fall."

In Manama, soldiers placed roadblocks and barbed wire around Pearl Square and other potential gathering sites. Work crews tried to cover up protest graffiti.

In another funeral in the Shiite village of Karzkan, opposition leaders urged protesters to keep up their fight but not to seek revenge.

"We know they have weapons and they are trying to drag us into violence," said Sheik Ali Salman, the leader of the largest Shiite party, Al Wefaq, whose 18 lawmakers have resigned in protest from the 40-seat parliament.

On Thursday, Bahrain's leaders banned public gatherings. But the underlying tensions in Bahrain run even deeper than the rebellions for democracy that began two months ago in Tunisia and later swept away Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and are challenging old-guard regimes in Libya and Yemen.

Foreign Minister Khalid Al Khalifa said the crackdown was necessary because the demonstrators were "polarizing the country" and pushing it to the "brink of the sectarian abyss."

Speaking to reporters after an emergency meeting with his Gulf counterparts in Manama, he called the violence "regrettable," said the deaths would be investigated and added that authorities chose to clear the square by force at 3 a.m. — when the fewest number of people would be in the square — "to minimize any possibility of casualties."

Many protesters were sleeping and said they received little warning of the assault. More than 230 people were injured, some seriously.

In Geneva, Navi Pillay, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said the response of some governments in the Middle East and Africa to the demands of their people was "illegal and excessively heavy-handed," and she condemned the use of military-grade shotguns by security forces in Bahrain. The European Union and Human Rights Watch urged Bahrain to order security forces to stop attacks on peaceful protesters.

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Washington must expand efforts for political and economic reforms in places such as Bahrain. "There is an urgency to this," he told the Senate Armed Services Committee.

WikiLeaks, the secret-sharing website, has released new State Department cables detailing basic Bahraini foreign policy and concerns about regional powerhouse Iran. One intriguing cable consists of questions sent by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, asking the embassy to evaluate the leadership potential of the country's top princes.

The cable includes questions about relationships between the princes, their influence on government, views of the United States and whether any of them have histories of drug or alcohol use. There is no record of any answers.

The protesters had called for the monarchy to give up control over top government posts and all critical decisions and address deep grievances by Shiites, who claim they face systematic discrimination and poverty and are blocked from key roles in public service and the military.

Shiites have clashed with police before over their complaints, including in the 1990s. But the growing numbers of Sunnis joining the latest demonstrations surprised authorities, said Simon Henderson, a Gulf specialist at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

"The Sunnis seem to increasingly dislike what is a very paternalistic government," he said. "As far as the Gulf rulers are concerned, there's only one proper way with this and that is: be tough and be tough early."

The Bahrain violence forced the cancellation of a lower-tier open-wheel race in Bahrain for Friday and Saturday, and leaves in doubt the March 13 season-opening Formula One race at the same track.

Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone said he will decide next week whether to proceed with the race. On Friday, he said he hoped the unrest "all blows away" so the event can be run as scheduled.

"Let's wait and see because we don't know what the protests are really about. We've never — ever, ever — been involved in religion and politics and we don't make decisions based on those things," Ecclestone told the BBC. "Because people (were) killed, nobody's happy with that I'm sure. In these parts there have always been skirmishes, so let's hope it's no more than that."

Slideshow:Protests in Bahrain

Play Video Video:The Middle East's Freedom Domino Effect ABC News

Play Video Video:Police crack down on Bahrain protest CBC.ca

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Barbara Surk in Manama and Brian Murphy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.

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Libyan site says national congress halts session

AP – A Libyan pro Gadhafi supporter displays a poster with his image, during a march supporting leader Moammar …

• Slideshow:Anti-government protests in Libya

By MAGGIE MICHAEL, Associated Press Maggie Michael, Associated Press – 31 mins ago

CAIRO – A Libyan website affiliated with one of longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi's sons said Friday that the national congress, under pressure from widespread unrest, has halted its session indefinitely and will take steps to reform the government when it reconvenes.

The website Quryna, which has ties to Seif al-Islam Gadhafi, said many state executives will be replaced when the congress returns.

Four days of pro-democracy protests in Libya have pushed for an end to Moammar Gadhafi's rule and have left dozens of demonstrators dead after clashes with security forces nationwide. There was another violent demonstration Friday in the eastern city of Benghazi, Libya's second-largest.

Gamal Bandour, a judge in Benghazi, said marchers clashed with security after a funeral where the bodies of 15 protesters shot to death on Thursday were buried. On their way back from the service, protesters set fire to government buildings and police stations.

Quryna said security personnel fired on the Benghazi protesters, killing 13 of them.

"The security forces were forced to use live bullets to stop the protesters, when their protests turned violent and aggressive as they set fire to police stations in the city, attacked administrative buildings and set fire to police vehicles including six in front of Jalaa Hospital," it said.

The site also said 1,000 inmates at a prison in Benghazi attacked guards and escaped, though three of them were shot dead by guards.

The wave of pro-democracy protests that has swept across the Middle East has brought unprecedented pressure on leaders like Gadhafi, who have held virtually unchecked power for decades.

Libya is oil-rich, but the gap between its haves and have-nots is wide. The Central Intelligence Agency estimates about one-third of Libyans live in poverty, and some demonstrators say that places outside the capital city of Tripoli have been badly neglected by the government.

The U.S.-based Human Rights Watch said 24 people died across the nation in unrest Wednesday and Thursday.

But the number quickly seemed outdated. Besides the deaths in Benghazi, a hospital official in the eastern city of Beyida told The Associated Press on Friday that the bodies of at least 23 slain protesters were at his facility, which was treating about 500 wounded — some in the parking lot for lack of beds.

"We need doctors, medicine and everything," he said. The official spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.

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Egyptians mass in Cairo to mark Mubarak fall

AP – A young boy watches from a rooftop as tens of thousands of Egyptians pray and celebrate the fall of the …

By BEN HUBBARD, Associated Press Ben Hubbard, Associated Press – 44 mins ago

CAIRO – Hundreds of thousands of flag-waving Egyptians packed into Cairo's central Tahrir Square in the first major rally since the fall of longtime leader Hosni Mubarak a week ago, celebrating his ouster and pressing Egypt's new military rulers to uproot the rest of his regime and steer the country toward reform.

Organizers are seeking to turn their movement, which forced Mubarak's removal after 18 days of mass protests, to now put pressure on the military to take greater action against regime figures who still hold considerable power.

Friday's crowd appeared to spiral well beyond the quarter-million that massed for the biggest of the anti-Mubarak protests. But for many, it was much a nationalist celebration of what has been accomplished as a rally to demand more. Parents painted children's faces with the national colors of black, white and red; the crowd unfurled giant Egyptian flags. Vendors hawked T-shirts praising the "Jan. 25 revolution" — a reference to the date protests began.

Protest leaders addressed the sprawling crowd, saying rallies must go on until the military meets their demands.

Protesters want the army to dissolve the caretaker government headed by Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq, which was appointed by Mubarak in his final weeks and contains many of his stalwarts. They also want the lifting of emergency laws that give police near unlimited powers of arrest. So far, the military has not moved on either issue, or on another demand for the release of thousands of political prisoners.

"We'll stay in the square until there is a new government, because there is no way we will see change under a government by the National Democratic Party," proclaimed prominent TV journalist Wael el-Ibrashi, one of the speakers on a stage before the crowd, referring to Mubarak's former ruling party.

Protest organizers have called for weekly protests every Friday, and their ability to keep them going will be a major test of how much they can influence the army.

Prominent Muslim cleric Sheik Youssef el-Qaradawi, who is linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, led the crowd in prayers, proclaiming, "The revolution is not over, until we have a new Egypt."

El-Qaradawi's appearance in Cairo's main square marked a dramatic return for the influential cleric, who has mostly lived abroad for decades after being jailed for his anti-government stances. During the protests, he used his weekly TV show on Al-Jazeera to urge Egyptians to join. In the square Friday, he hailed the young protest activists — from a range of ideologies — saying, "They knew that the revolution will win in the end."

In Egypt's second largest city, the Mediterranean port of Alexandria, hundreds of thousands rallied outside a main mosque, then paraded down the seafront boulevard. They shouted for the Shafiq government's removal, using the same chant as protests against Mubarak — "The people want to topple the regime." Soldiers in the streets did not interfere.

In Tahrir, the military seemed eager to encourage a festive, nationalist atmosphere: Soldiers distributed Egyptian flags to families as they streamed into the square. At one point, a military marching band paraded through the square the entertain the partygoers. Army tanks and checkpoints were stationed at entrances to the square, with soldiers checking IDs and bags of those heading in.

The Armed Forces Supreme Council, a body of top generals which forced Mubarak to resign and hand it his powers, has promised a swift transition to an elected government and president — within six months. In the final days of the protests, many in the crowds had pleaded with the army to push Mubarak out.

But in the past week, worries have begun to arise among protest leaders about the military's handling of the transition. Changes to the constitution are being planned behind closed doors by a military-appointed panel. So far, reform leaders have not been given any position of power or influence in the transition, the Mubarak-apppointed government remains in place, and police powers remain intact.

The military has hinted over the past week that its patience is running out with protests and especially labor strikes that have spread wildly since the days just before Mubarak's fall.

But far from cracking down, the army's attitude toward Friday's rally could mark a different strategy: Turn the "revolution" into a nationalist event, celebrate it, but then move on.

Manal Samir, 49, a pediatrician who brought her two daughters to the celebrations, said she had faith in the army for now, "but only for a temporary period." She said her sons had participated in the 18 days of massive protests that led to Mubarak's resignation a week ago, but she and her daughters, aged 12 and 16, hadn't come until now.

"We came to celebrate what the young people (had done). I want my children to know what happened here, and to learn from it," she said. "Not everything comes at the same time, but I believe we won because Mubarak left and the other demands will be fulfilled in time."

The atmosphere was festive. Vendors hawked T-shirts proclaiming "Jan. 25, the day we changed Egypt," flags, headbands and badges all in the red-black-and-while national colors. Some even sold vuvuzelas, the buzzing horns that became the soundtrack to the World Cup in South Africa last summer.

"We are excited about Egypt and the revolution," said 48-year-old Ashraf Abdel-Azim, who made his way to the square with his wife, Nadwa, and their 9-year-old son, Ahmed. "We want freedom and change, so we are happy to see it coming."

His wife held a handwritten cardboard sign, "The people want to cleanse the country of corruption," it read.

A monument to those killed in the uprising — at least 365 civilians, according to the Health Ministry — was erected in one area of the vast plaza. Many lay flowers in front of the monument or took photos of the pictures of the dead.

Many said they were focused on continuing to pressure the military.

Mohammed Zuheir, an activist handing out signs, said: "We have one main demand, we want the end of the old regime and a new government that has no people left over from Mubarak's regime."

Asked what the organizers plan was, he pointed at the huge crowd in the square. "That's what we are doing," he said. "We are still concentrating on coming out together as one to get rid of the old regime."

Speaking with a microphone on stage, Mohammed el-Beltagy, a Muslim Brotherhood member prominent in the protests, led the crowd in a call-and-response, shouting, "Can we stop the protests when the government of Ahmed Shafiq is still there?" The crowd roared back, "No, no, no."

In a small counterpoint to the scene at Tahrir Square, scores of Mubarak supporters protested outside a mosque Friday. Demonstrators, many dressed in black, held photos of the ex-president and said they wanted to honor the man who led them for nearly three decades because they felt he had been humiliated by the revolt.

While the uprising has lifted national pride, it has pounded the Egyptian economy, raising the tension between protesters and their new rulers.

The tourism industry has been hit hard, with many vacationers abandoning trips and tourism sites closed. Egypt plans to reopen heritage sites Sunday, and France's CETO association of tour operators said Friday that it will start sending tourists to Red Sea resorts, Nile River cruises and the southern Lake Nasser starting next Tuesday.

"Tour operators are still evaluating the situation in other areas of the country, notably for the city of Cairo," a CETO statement said.

Banks and the stock market also have been shuttered by the uprising, and the military has twice warned Egyptians not to strike. Even so, at least 1,500 employees of the Suez Canal Authority protested for better pay, housing and benefits Thursday in three cities — just one example of workers nationwide using this opportunity to voice long-held grievances.

Wael Hassan, a 32-year-old dentist who participated in the Cairo protests and witnessed major clashes on Jan. 28, went to Tahrir Square on Friday and captured the anxiety many Egyptians have about the future.

"For me, it's not a celebration," he said. "It's a message to the army and the government that we're still here and we will still protest, that we won't stop until we see a civilian government, not a government appointed by Mubarak himself."

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Associated Press Writer Maggie Michael contributed to this story.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110218/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_egypt