TUNISIA

President Barack Obama promised to support democracy in nascent revolutions in the Middle East on Friday, saying he would push for billions of dollars in financial incentives for Egypt and Tunisia on Thursday in the wake of uprisings across the region in recent months.

Here is the White House text of President Barack Obama‘s speech on the Middle East, as prepared for delivery.

Tunisian authorities have lifted an overnight curfew imposed in the capital city of Tunis 10 days ago.

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi wife and daughter have fled for Tunisia, a Tunisian security source told Reuters.

A recorded audio messages purportedly made by Osama bin Laden and shortly before he was killed wqas released by al Qaeda's media wing as-Sahab on Wednesday and posted on some select Islamic websites, reports said.

More than 750,000 people have fled Libya and another 150,000 have relocated in the country since the conflict started, Panos Moumtzis, United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Libya, said on Tuesday.

In his speech concerning the Middle East at the State Department this Thursday, President Barack Obama is expected to outline his vision for the future of a region in upheaval.

Libya’s oil minister has reportedly fled the tattered regime of Moammar Gaddafi and defected to Tunisia over the weekend, making him one of the most prominent Libyan officials to abandon Tripoli.

There are two carved-in-granite long-term economic trends; one of them being the decline of the dollar and the other one being war. I think those are locked in, and so I recommend people buy investments that do well during wartime or during periods of currency debasement, which we have.

Oil prices edged lower on Tuesday, pressured by a stronger dollar and concerns about global growth prospects after a slew of weak economic data, bringing losses to around 15 percent so far in May.

Oil prices rose on Tuesday, after sliding by around 15 percent so far in May, but investors were concerned about global growth prospects after a slew of weak economic data.

Tunisian forces have arrested two suspected members of al Qaeda near the Libyan border.

Osama bin Laden apparently supported the revolts which spread across the Arab world this spring, according to an audio message found at his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, according to a U.S. government official.

The Islamic Republic of Iran finds itself grappling with new realities in a Middle East that has been turned upside-down by an unprecedented wave of revolt and rebellion

Libya's army fired streams of rockets at the rebel-occupied Zintan, forcing thousands to flee the town to bordering Tunisia.

The Swiss government has imposed a three-year freeze on bank assets valued at 830-million Swiss Francs (almost $1-billion) which are linked to Moammar Gaddafi of Libya, Hosni Mubarak, the former leader of Egypt and Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the deposed ruler of Tunisia.

Amidst a growing chorus accusations by India that the Pakistani authorities had been harboring Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in their country for years, the former chief of Pakistani intelligence vehemently has denied the allegations. However, he also warned that Al Qaeda may take revenge in retaliation for the killing of Osama.

Libyan rebels have rejected a proposal by Moammar Gaddafi to call for a ceasefire in exchange for an end to NATO military strikes.

Rev. Franklin Graham's comments on President Barack Obama's birth certificate, views on presidential politics and his charge that the Muslim Brotherhood has influence in U.S. State Department and military have come into the spotlight this week.

Human rights groups have demanded that the government of Bahrain put a stop to committing human rights violations against protestors and halt the practice of detaining patients and doctors suspected of either having participating in protests or being sympathetic with them.

Protests in Syria against the autocratic rule of the Assad regime took a grave turn on Friday as security forces killed over 75 people to control the mass uprising.