President Barack Obama said on Friday he was deeply concerned about reports of violence in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen and urged the governments to show restraint in responding to peaceful protests.
The ruler of Libya, Colonel Moammar Gadhafi, has deployed security forces throughout the country to quell further unrest in the country following the deaths of at least two dozen protesters in rallies across the count
Gold hit five-week highs in Europe on Friday and silver its strongest since 1980 as growing unrest in the Middle East lifted interest in precious metals, though another reserve requirement hike from China curbed gains.
Libya said on Friday that it has decided to postpone indefinitely the 23rd summit of Arab League, a 22-member forum representing Arab nations, said a media report.
As authorities in Middle East countries hit by protests continue to censor media and disrupt communication, deaths and the consequent funerals in Bahrain, Yemen and Libya are expected to escalate the unrest.
The price of large, wholesale Gold Bars continued rising for US investors on Thursday, ending London trade at a 5-week high of $1383 per ounce as world stock markets held flat and the Dollar slipped on the currency market.
Reports are coming out of Libya of increased anti-government protests which have left at least sixteen people dead, as activists have called for a “Day of Rage” through social networking sites.
The cancellation of plans by two Iranian naval vessels to pass through the strategic Suez Canal removed on Thursday a potential foreign policy headache for the new military rulers struggling to get Egypt back on its feet.
Unrest spread across the Middle East and North Africa on Thursday as Bahrain launched a swift military crackdown on anti-government protesters and clashes were reported in Libya and Yemen.
Egyptian youth leaders moved to set up a new political party on Thursday in the post-Mubarak era while a committee worked on changing the constitution to prepare for elections promised by military rulers within six months.
Hundreds of supporters of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi rallied on Thursday but there were reports of unrest in several locations as the opposition called for a day of anti-government protests.
Gold rose for a fourth day in a row on Thursday in its strongest run since September, helped by safe-haven demand as unrest spread across the Middle East, while the dollar remained under mild pressure.
After the sexual assault on CBS news' Lara Logan in Egypt, an ABC reporter Miguel Marquez has been attacked in Bahrain. Slideshow recalls incidents of assault against journalists in the Middle East based on the CPJ statement.
In an attempt to sabotage the pro-democracy protests, Iran has censored internet by slowing speed, electronic communication and the media has been gagged.
Anti-government protests inspired by popular revolts that toppled rulers in Tunisia and Egypt are gaining pace around the Middle East and North Africa despite political and economic concessions by nervous governments.
Internet and social media platforms which emerged as potent tools for churning up dissent in Egypt and Tunisia continue to play a crucial role even in the latest upheaval in Libya, Bahrain as well as in Iran.
About 200 anti-government protesters demanding the release of a human rights activist clashed with police on Wednesday in Libya's coastal city of Benghazi, according to reports.
Morocco said Algeria and the Polisario Front, which wants independence for Western Sahara, may use political upheavals sweeping some countries in the Arab world to stir unrest in the disputed desert region.
Libya has handed out more than $2 billion in loans to dozens of governments across the globe, according to an internal document that shows the oil exporter's diplomatic ambitions and its struggles to recover its debts.
U.S. crude futures edged above $89.05 a barrel on Monday, recovering from a near 2 percent drop in the previous session, supported by the political crisis in Egypt and a drop in the U.S. unemployment rate to a 21-month low.
Investors from China and Libya are interested in buying agribusinesses in Ukraine to secure food supplies, a newspaper quoted top Austrian investment bankers as saying.
As popular protests are bring down governments or seriously compromising rulers in the Middle East, one person looking at the turn of events uneasily is the Saudi Arabian King Abdullah.
