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Iran Pro-Regime 'Hatred' Rally Demands Opposition Chiefs Hanged

Tens of thousands of Iran regime loyalists poured on to the streets of Tehran Friday, demanding that opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi be hanged for their "rebellion."

"Death to Mousavi! Death to Karroubi! Mousavi, Karroubi should be hanged!" worshippers chanted as they emerged from Friday prayers at Tehran University to join large crowds of loyalists marching towards prominent Enghelab Square (Revolution Square).

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Grenade Attack Kills 2 Yemeni Protesters, Hurts 27

Anti-regime protesters in the volatile Yemen city of Taez were blasted with a hand grenade Friday leaving two dead and dozens hurt, while violent clashes also erupted in Sanaa, witnesses said.

The grenade attack came as hundreds of protesters took to the center of Taez after the Friday Muslim prayers to demand the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in protests that have been raging in the city for the past week.

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Kuwait’s Stateless Arabs Protest for Rights

Hundreds of stateless Arabs in the Gulf state of Kuwait demonstrated on Friday demanding a solution to their problem and citizenship which the government refuses, an Agence France Presse photographer said.

Some 300 men began the protest following the Muslim Friday prayers in Jahra city, 50 kilometers (31 miles) west of Kuwait City amid tight security including members of the elite riot police.

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Libya Announces, but Iraq Denies, Arab Summit Delay

Libya said an Arab League summit set for March 29 has been put off, but Iraq, which is hosting the event, denied the claim, saying on Friday that postponement was not "an individual decision."

The official Libyan news agency Jana reported on Thursday that the presidency of the Arab League summit had decided to push back the Baghdad meeting in light of turmoil across the Arab world.

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Human Rights Watch: Libya Crackdown on Protests Kill 24

Libyan security forces killed at least 24 people in a violent crackdown on anti-regime demonstrations during a "Day of Anger" against strongman Moammer Gadhafi, Human Rights Watch said Friday.

The New York-based rights group, citing witnesses, said 24 protesters were killed and scores injured during Thursday's assaults on protests in two Libyan cities.

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Egypt Detains Three Ex-Ministers

Egypt has arrested two former government ministers and a businessman on suspicion of diverting public funds, a judicial source told Agence France Presse on Thursday.

Once widely feared former interior minister Habib al-Adly was also arrested on suspicion of money-laundering and ordered held for 15 days, the same source said.

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Ben Ali in Coma in Saudi Hospital, Says Family Friend

Ousted Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali suffered a stroke and was "in a coma" in a Saudi hospital, a family friend said Thursday, as more details of corruption under his rule came to light.

The 74-year-old former leader slipped into a coma "two days ago" while being treated in a Jeddah hospital after a stroke, according to the friend.

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Bahrain Opposition Urges Govt to Resign as Shiite MPs Quit Parliament

Bahrain's opposition demands the resignation of Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa's government following a deadly raid on anti-regime protesters, a Shiite opposition bloc said on Thursday.

"The opposition groups, including Al-Wefaq, have issued a statement demanding the government resign and calling for the formation of a new government to investigate this crime," said Al-Wefaq bloc's leader, Ali Salman.

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Iran Seeks Cairo OK for Warships' Suez Passage

Iranian officials were in contact with their counterparts in Egypt to secure the passage of two warships through the Suez Canal, Tehran's English-language Press TV reported on Thursday.

The vessels intend to transit the canal, the channel's website quoted an unnamed Iranian navy official as saying.

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Gulf FMs to Hold Solidarity Meet in Bahrain

Arab foreign ministers of the Gulf monarchies are to hold an emergency meeting on Thursday in Manama, gripped by protests in which six people have been killed, Bahrain's foreign ministry said.

"The Gulf Cooperation Council states are expected to announce their support for the (Bahraini) government in security, defense and politically," said a ministry spokesman.

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