Egypt's Mubarak declared 'clinically dead' after a stroke [Press TV, Iran]

Egypt's deposed ruler Hosni Mubarak has been declared clinically dead following a stroke. He was moved to a military hospital after being put on a respirator. Security around Cairo's Central Prison has been tightened. He was sentenced to a life term for his role in the killing of protestors in Egypt's revolution last year. He had suffered from high blood pressure and breathing difficulties.

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Egyptian army blocks road to parliament as MPs attempt to enter [Press TV, Iran]

Protestors in Egypt are planning another big push against their military rulers. The Muslim Brotherhood has called for large demonstrations across the country after the military council dissolved Parliament over the weekend and claimed all legislative powers, took control of the state budget, and gave itself veto power on a new constitution.

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Mohammed Morsy, Ahmed Shafiq both claim victory in Egyptian presidential runoff [Press TV, Iran]

Meanwhile, both candidates in the runoff presidential election in Egypt are claiming victory. The Muslim Brotherhood says that its candidate, Mohammed Morsy, has won 52 percent of the votes, while Ahmed Shafiq's campaign says the claim is false.

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Hamas fires ten Grad rockets at Israel in retaliation for air strike deaths [Press TV, Iran]

The Palestinian resistance group Hamas says that it has fired ten Grad rockets at Israel in retaliation after Israel raids killed six Palestinians, adding that it will fire more rockets if Tel Aviv continues its strikes against Gaza.

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Over a dozen rockets hit Ashkelon, Eshkol Regional Council; Hamas claims responsibility [IBA, Israel]

More than a dozen rockets have hit the Ashkelon region and the Eshkol Regional Council in Israel. None have caused injuries or significant damage. Hamas and its Izzedine al-Qassam military claimed responsibility for firing at least three of the mortars, saying it was in response to the killing of at least four Palestinians by the IDF.

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IDF chief visits site of construction worker's death at Israeli border fence [IBA, Israel]

IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz visited the site of yesterday's attack near the security fence on the Egyptian border, where an Israeli construction worker was killed and two terrorists were killed by IDF soldiers in the ensuing gunfight. Gantz said that Israel expects to exercise its sovereignty, and noted that the construction is continuing at a brisk pace, but cautioned that terror bases are forming within the Sinai region.

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US expresses concern over Sinai unrest, border instability [IBA, Israel]

The US has expressed concern over the unrest in Sinai and with the instability it is creating along the Egyptian-Israeli border, and encouraged the Egyptian government to find a lasting resolution to the issue of Sinai security. The US denounced the killings of civilians in Israel in the Sinai Peninsula as terrorist acts.

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Sudanese students 'rise up' against Bashir's austerity plan [Al Jazeera, Qatar]

Presenter, Female #1
In Sudan, Khartoum University is witnessing a second day of demonstrations against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's decision to raise oil prices.

Presenter, Male #1
Al-Bashir had announced a package of political and economic measures, which include lifting oil subsidies and reducing a number of state ministries, and dismissing ministers in both central and provincial governments by up to 50 percent.

Reporter, Male #2
The Sudanese political scene is tense after the announcement of brutal economic measures, with which the authorities are attempting to overcome the crisis the country is experiencing. These measures will aggravate the already difficult living conditions for the Sudanese people.

Reporter, Male #2
In parliament, the Sudanese president announced a series of reforms, most notably cuts in the number of federal government officials through the elimination of ministries and dismissal of ministers and provincial officials. However, al-Bashir vowed to support the poor.

Guest, Male #3 (Omar al-Bashir, Sudanese President)
The cuts will apply to government positions and officials in executive and legislative departments by around 45 percent, and then 50 percent. But we vow to exert the greatest efforts to alleviate the impact of these measures on the poor and those with a limited income.
Reporter, Male #2
The Sudanese government's measures were confronted by strong criticism from the opposition. The opposition denounced the government for transferring the burden of the state's careless spending and its negative political repercussions on the citizens by lifting the subsidies on basic products.

Guest, Male #4 (Ibrahim al-Amin, Opposition National Umma Party of Sudan)
There is no planning. The Ministry of Finance doesn't have authority over public funds, because certain institutions have complete control. There is mismanagement in all parts of the government; there is corruption. So, within this regime, Sudan's issues cannot be solved, nor can stability be achieved; wars will continue between the parties; the economic crisis will become even more complicated.

Reporter, Male #2
The new measures were confronted with demonstrations organized by a number of Khartoum University students protesting the government's economic policies and the price increase. The demonstrators were quickly dispersed by the police. President Bashir is expected to issue decisions on restructuring the government and reshuffling the cabinet following the implementation of the new economic policies.

Reporter, Male #2
But the government has limited options to overcome the economic crisis. Meanwhile, the opposition has many options, which it says begin with confronting the regime. So the expectations for the situation in the coming phase are mixed. Al-Taher al-Mardi, Al Jazeera, al-Khartoum.

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Bahraini forces raid residential areas to arrest protestors [Al-Alam, Iran]

Presenter, Female #1
In Bahrain, massive demonstrations broke out across the country. Regime forces launched a series of raids in a number of residential areas to arrest citizens. The towns were flooded in a barrage of poisonous gas.

Reporter, Male #1
This is how the Bahraini scene starts in broad daylight, and this is how Bahrainis spend their nights in many areas. Bahraini regime forces stormed the citizens' homes and carried out a series of raids in many areas, during which many people were arrested. Massive marches broke out in various regions across the country, such as Diraz, Sanabis, Abu Saiba, A'ali, Bani Jamra, Samaheej, Bilad al-Qadeem, ad-Dayr, and others, to condemn the regime's arbitrary practices.

Reporter, Male #1
The regime's forces initiated a crackdown on peaceful marches across the country. The repressive measures included besieging certain areas and barring citizens from entering or exiting. The Bahraini authorities insist on continuing the repression campaign to resolve the political crisis that the country has been living under for over 16 months.

Reporter, Male #1
It was not only the young men in the protests who were targeted, but it was also the women, who ran out of their houses after the security forces fired poisonous and suffocating gas at them. The women were faced by regime forces, who directly assaulted them with the use of shotguns at times, and stun grenades and asphyxiating gas at others.

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Norway's Oslo Times shows evidence of Bahraini human rights violations [Al-Alam, Iran]

Presenter, Female #1
The Norwegian newspaper Oslo Times' online version published a comprehensive report on the violent and criminal crackdown on the peaceful protests in Bahrain by the order of the king. The report called for an international mobilization to save the Bahraini people.

Presenter, Female #1
The website said the authorities in al-Manama have committed the most egregious forms of human rights violations. It confirmed that "facts" released by international media networks supporting the Bahraini regime completely differ from the gloomy truth. The newspaper showed evidence proving the involvement of members of the ruling family in torturing detainees, the regime forces' practices of raping children and stabbing them with knives, as well as using birdshot pellets, amid international silence.

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PKK members attack Turkish military station in Hakkari Province, killing eight soldiers [BBC Arabic, UK]

Presenter, Female #1
In southeastern Turkey, at least eight Turkish soldiers were killed and 16 others were wounded, and ten were killed from the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. The attack was launched by members of the banned PKK on a Turkish military station in Hakkari Province, near the border with Iran and Iraq.

Reporter, Female #2
According to Turkish security and media sources, a number of Turkish soldiers were killed and 15 others were injured, and ten members of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party were killed, in an attack launched by PKK members in a remote area of southeastern Turkey.

Reporter, Female #2
The attack took place in the Daglica area of Yuksekova City in the province of Hakkari, located by the border with Iraq and Iran. The rugged mountainous regions of southeastern Turkey often witness such attacks. And the Turkish Hakkari Province is a region that often sees violent battles between Turkish security forces and members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party.

Reporter, Female #2
PKK members usually escalate their attacks on Turkish territories as the summer approaches. Turkish sources say the attackers infiltrated Turkey from their bases in northern Iraq, and the group launched an offensive on a Turkish military station. Turkish ground forces responded to the attack and drove out the attackers with the support of combat helicopters.

Reporter, Female #2
The Kurdistan Workers' Party carried out a similar operation last summer and killed 12 Turkish soldiers. It is worth mentioning that thousands of people have been killed since these armed attacks began in 1984 by PKK members who demand secession. Turkey and other countries categorize the PKK as a terrorist group. Nabiha Wattas, BBC.

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UN discusses future of international observers in Syria, Annan plan [BBC Arabic, UK]

Presenter, Female #1
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed the killing of 14 people across Syria. The Observatory spoke of intensified shelling that targeted the areas of al-Khalidiya, Jourat al-Shiyah, and al-Qarabis in the city of Homs. Meanwhile, Damascus accused what it refers to as an armed terrorist group of hindering the evacuation of citizens who are besieged by the shelling in Homs.

Presenter, Female #1
Members of the UN Security Council are meeting today to discuss the future of the international observers' mission in Syria and UN-Arab League Envoy Kofi Annan's plan. The head of the international observers' delegation to Syria, General Robert Mood, is scheduled to brief the Security Council on the reasons for suspending the observers' mission.

Guest, Male #1 (Li Baodong, Chinese UN Ambassador and Current Security Council President)
We're very concerned about the suspension of mission observers in Syria, and we believe that the parties, all parties in Syria, should offer full cooperation to mission observers. It's very important for them to implement Kofi Annan's six-point peace plan. We believe the delegation is still carrying out its mission, even though we have received some conflicting reports about the current situation in Syria. General Robert Mood will submit a summary to the Security Council on what is happening in Syria.

Presenter, Female #1
Also on Syria, US President Barack Obama said after a meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that the two countries agree on the necessity to finding a political solution in Syria to avoid civil war. For his part, Secretary-General of the Arab League, Nabil al-Arabi, had high hopes for the Obama-Putin meeting, believing it was a chance for rapprochement and bridging the gap between Moscow and Washington on the Syrian crisis.

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Kuwait suspends legislature on eve of Interior Minister interrogation [Dubai TV, UAE]

Presenter, Male #1
Kuwait embarked on a legislative shutdown after Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah issued a decree suspending the National Assembly's sessions for one month. This is the first such constitutional decree in the history of Kuwait. Rising tension between the parliament and the government has led to the resignation of two cabinet ministers. The suspension comes on the eve of the planned questioning of the interior minister by opposition legislators. Ahmed al-Einaizi reports from Kuwait.

Reporter, Male #2
This is the first time since the foundation of the constitution that Article 106 is activated by the Emir of Kuwait, who called for the suspension of the National Assembly for one month. The decision was immediately approved by the council of ministers. The article states that an adjournment may not be repeated in the same session, and may not be counted in computing the duration of parliament.

Guest, Male #3 (Dr. Obeid al-Wasmi, MP)
The suspension will only affect parliamentary privileges with regard to the endorsement of laws. However, the work of parliamentary committees and legislators, or any type of work that doesn't require holding a parliamentary session, will not be affected by the suspension.

Reporter, Male #2
It was a surprise constitutional measure that the opposition described as a "genuine right exercised by the Emir." The opposition said the decision will give the government an opportunity to reshuffle the cabinet after several of its members were questioned. The relationship between the government and the legislative authority has recently witnessed a major setback.

Guest, Male #4 (Juma'an al-Hursh, MP)
The committees will continue drafting laws, God willing. And in a month, all these laws will be presented to parliament.

Reporter, Male #2
Anti-corruption, financial disclosures, and constitutional codes are among the laws that were slated for discussion in the upcoming sessions. But in light of this latest decree, these laws are now facing uncertainty.

Reporter, Male #2
Kuwait has entered parliamentary silence until further notice. This may either help restore the relationship between the executive authority or the government on one side and the legislative authority represented by the parliament on the other, or it may lead to the dissolution of either one, according to knowledgeable sources on political affairs. Ahmed al-Einaizi, Dubai TV, Kuwait.

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Young man killed by Lebanese gunfire at funeral of man killed by Lebanese gunfire in Palestinian refugee camp [Palestine TV, Ramallah]

Presenter, Male #1
A tragic incident has rocked the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp. During a phone call with his Lebanese counterpart, the Palestinian president called for restraint and for an end to hostility in the camp, which held a funeral procession for a young martyr. A splinter group, which infiltrated the Lebanese army, was held responsible for another incident that claimed the life of another martyr.

Presenter, Male #1
A Palestinian man was martyred and 13 others were wounded by the gunfire of the Lebanese army in the Nahr al-Bared camp during a funeral procession for Ahmed Qassem. The details are in the following report.

Reporter, Female #1
Ahmed Qassem is the martyr of the revolution and the Nahr al-Bared camp, as declared by the Palestine Liberation Organization, PLO, and the Fatah movement. The camps in the north of Lebanon have bid him farewell. The funeral procession was launched from al-Beddawi refugee camp, amid the participation of leaders of the various Palestinian factions and popular committees and delegations. The martyr was laid to rest to the beat of a show by the Guard of Honor of the National security forces. The mourners marched across Nahr al-Bared where the young man was killed by the Lebanese army gunfire, amid the rage of residents.

Reporter, Female #1
The streets were cut off with burning tires in different parts of the camp. However, a section remained open to allow the procession to pass. The coffin was taken to the sit-in tent.

Guest, Male #2 (Emad Qassem, Father of Martyr Ahmed Qassem)
We hope that the Lebanese government and army will continue their investigation with transparency in order to preserve our rights and Ahmed's rights. Ahmed is our martyr and Nahr al-Bared's martyr. Credit goes out to President Mahmud Abbas, who made it easy for me and my children to come here and see my son.

Reporter, Female #1
Qassem's home in the camp was packed with mourners, including political and factional leaders, who came to offer their condolences. There was a demand to deal with Nahr al-Bared refugee camp like the remaining refugee camps in Lebanon.

Guest, Male #3 (Sihi Abu Arab, Leader of Palestinian National Security Forces in Lebanon)
We demand they deal with Nahr al-Bared as any other Palestinian refugee camp. Every camp has a written sign saying "no entry by the army." This sign is written on the entrances of Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp and al-Rashidieh camp. Why not Nahr al-Bared? They are deploying patrols inside the camp. They promised to look into it.

Reporter, Female #1
A prayer was performed for the martyr's soul in al-Quds Mosque of the camp, while meetings are ongoing with the Lebanese side to settle the al-Bared issue.

Guest, Male #4 (Fathi Abu al-Aradat, Secretary of Palestinian Liberation Organization factions in Lebanon)
When we met with the brothers in the army, we told them that they have the authority, but they must guarantee freedom, dignity and justice for the Palestinians in this camp. This is a martyr of the Palestinian revolution, a martyr of Nahr al-Bared refugee camp, and a martyr of all the refugee camps. He has fallen on Lebanese soil, but we were hoping that he would fall by the border, on the way to Palestine.

Reporter, Female #1
The funeral procession was turned into a popular march attended by thousands of the camp's residents. The martyr was laid to rest in the Khaled Ibn al-Walid Cemetery. Despite efforts to keep the march peaceful, a skirmish ensued between a number of mourners and the Lebanese army, killing a youth from the camp and injuring 13 others. This is a sad day for the loss of a youth and for the Palestinian-Lebanese relationship. But there is hope and an appeal for the future to be different than the past. From the hard-stricken refugee camp Nahr al-Bared, northern Lebanon, Zaina Abed Samad, Palestine TV.