Anti-NATO protesters in Chicago rap US spending on wars

Thousands of anti-NATO protesters have flooded the streets in Chicago, condemning the spending of taxpayer dollars on US-led wars around the world.Scuffles broke out late Sunday between police and anti-NATO protesters who demanded an end to US-led wars and the spending of tax-payer money on them, which they blamed for cuts in social programs. Several demonstrators were detained as NATO’s 25th summit, which hosts more than 50 world leaders, went on in Chicago. One protester carrying a poster which read "fly kites not drones”, said that he thinks NATO must be disbanded and taxpayer money spent on wars would be better off funding education and health care. "I'm against the war," Jean Anderson, another anti-NATO protester noted, adding, “There are powers that I need to fight back against and I need to represent people who can't speak out because they're in oppressed …

Two killed in Beirut clashes

Lebanese state media say two people have been killed and 18 others injured in clashes between the supporters and opponents of the Syrian government in the capital, Beirut.The victims died in street fighting in Beirut during the early hours of Monday. Rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns were used in the clashes, which broke out after reports said that Lebanese army troops shot dead anti-Syria cleric Ahmad Abdel Wahed when the convoy transporting him did not stop at a checkpoint in the town of Koueikhat, located in the northern district of Akkar, on May 20. Lebanese security officials said another person in the convoy was also killed. “The leadership of the army expresses deep regrets for the death of the two victims,” the Lebanese army said in a statement issued after the Akkar shooting incident. The statement added that the army will “immediately form an …

Al-Jazeera TV Claims on Assassination of Syrian Political, Security Officials Baseless

A Syrian official source on Sunday denied as completely groundless the news reported by al-Jazeera Channel on the assassination of a number of political and security officials, asserting that they are performing their duties.Assistant Vice-President, General Hasan Turkmani, said in a statement "The news reported by al-Jazeera is completely baseless and reflects full media bankruptcy".Gen. Turkmani added ''My colleagues and I are safe and sound and serving our duties assuredly. These false news go unheeded by the Syrian people because they already know that they are blatant lies.''For his part, Minister of Interior, Lieutenant General Mohammad al-Shaar, said "The news reported by al-Jazeera is groundless", asserting "We are used to hearing such news led by the lies and allegation campaign."He considered that these TV channels have lost their credibility and turned into operating rooms …

Iranian students stage rally to protest Saudi-Bahrain merger plan

Hundreds of Iranian university students have staged a rally to protest against a bid for the merger of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.During the rally held in front of the UN mission in Tehran on Sunday, the Iranian demonstrators chanted slogans in condemnation of the proposal, and expressed solidarity with the Bahraini people.“We are here to show our support for the innocent people of Bahrain and to protest against the plan to merge Bahrain with Saudi Arabia,” a female protester told Press TV.The demonstrators also said the Al Saud regime of Saudi Arabia will not succeed in suppressing anti-regime protests in neighboring Bahrain through the merger plan.“They won’t be able to silence the people of Bahrain, and stop the will of its revolution through the Saudi-Bahrain merger plan,” a young protester said.“There are forces behind the scene supported by Britain and Saudi Arabia that …

Anti-NATO protester abused by Chicago police

An Anti-NATO protester says the Chicago police have abused him and violated his civil rights after he was arrested in a controversial raid on the activist’s house.Darrin Annussek, who was among the nine protesters arrested on Wednesday night at an apartment, said he was never read his rights or even questioned by the police. “For 18 hours, we were handcuffed to a bench and our legs were shackled together,” Annussek said. “Some of our cries for the bathroom were either ignored or met with silence, As a result, some of us were forced to urinate or defecate in the area where we were confined to,” the former social worker added. Chicago police dressed in black and armed with battering rams broke down doors in an apartment building, and then arrested nine protesters for allegedly making or possessing Molotov cocktails. Annussek, 36, was released Friday morning …

Yemeni protesters in Taizz demand prosecution of Saleh

Yemeni protesters have held a demonstration in the southern city of Taizz to demand the prosecution of former dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh, Press TV reports.Demonstrators took to the streets of Taizz on Sunday, blaming Saleh and his aides for the killing of anti-regime protesters during the popular uprising that began in January 2011. Over the past weeks, Yemeni protesters have held several similar demonstrations in Taizz. Saleh formally stepped down and handed over power to his deputy Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi on February 27. The power transfer occurred under a Saudi-backed deal brokered by the [Persian] Gulf Cooperation Council in April 2011 and signed by Saleh in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on November 23, 2011. The new Yemeni president, who is a UK-trained field marshal, was sworn in on February 25 following a single-candidate presidential election, which was supported by the …

Police clash with protesters in Chicago anti-NATO rallies

Tensions have flared up between protesters and police in the Midwest US City of Chicago on the eve of the first NATO summit being held in the country away from the capital City of Washington.Hundreds of people joined the last of several protest rallies on Saturday evening in the busy Chicago Loop area, marching downtown where scuffles broke out between demonstrators and police who used batons against the protesters and push them to the ground. With massive police forces and protesters remaining on Chicago streets late Saturday, it was not yet clear how and when the night would wind up, local press reports said. The Saturday evening incident was among the first major tensions between police and demonstrators in two days of protest rallies leading up to the Sunday commencement of the major NATO summit. Tensions were not reported as high earlier on Saturday, when hundreds of …