Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi says Libyans will take up against Western nations if they move to impose a no-fly zone over the country.
In an interview aired Wednesday by Turkey's state-run TRT television, Gadhafi said such a move would lead Libyans to see that Western nations' real intention is to seize Libya's oil.
Separately Wednesday, in remarks broadcast on state television, Gadhafi repeated his claim that foreign operatives are responsible for the uprising against his government.
Addressing a group of people from the town of Zentan, Gadhafi blamed outside elements from Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt and the Palestinian territories for the rebellion.
Troops loyal to Gadhafi attacked the rebel-held city of Zawiya for a fifth day Tuesday, part of renewed assaults aimed at reclaiming ground lost to rebel forces. Eyewitnesses said the city, 50 kilometers west of the capital, came under heavy mortar fire.
To the east, much of which is under opposition control, Libyan warplanes carried out several airstrikes on anti-government positions around the key oil port of Ras Lanuf. The city was bombed heavily as pro-Gadhafi forces targeted the town's water reservoir among other installations. But as of late Tuesday, rebel officials said they still controlled the area.
Anti-government forces are seeking to recapture the city of Bin Jawad, 160 kilometers east of Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte, after pulling out in the face of reinforced government troops.
Opposition leaders based in the eastern city of Benghazi initially suggested they made an amnesty offer to Gadhafi, but later denied any back-channel negotiations were under way. A spokesman for the rebel National Libyan Council, Abdul Hafidh Ghoga, said the group is not prepared to negotiate.
Ghoga called again for foreign powers to impose a no-fly zone over Libya and effectively ground Mr. Gadhafi's air force.
Rebel representatives said they have had contacts with some foreign governments, and have sent envoys to several European cities seeking support. An Italian diplomatic delegation was in Benghazi Tuesday meeting with opposition leaders. It was the first official public visit by Western diplomats since the establishment of the provisional rebel government.
But activists say the Benghazi council's authority remains tentative and has yet to unite with disparate, divided opposition groups abroad.
A council official told European officials Monday that Gadhafi is relying on his air force because he lacks adequate ground troops to put down the uprising. Mahmoud Jebril said the Libyan leader relies largely on security brigades led by his sons and loyal officers.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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Pakistani officials say a suicide bomber blew himself up in the country's northwest, killing at least 34 people and wounding at least 60 others.
Officials say the attack Wednesday targeted a group of about 200 mourners attending a funeral near the city of Peshawar. The funeral was for the wife of an anti-Taliban tribal militiaman from an area known for bloody clashes between Taliban and pro-government fighters.
The bombing comes a day after a car bombing killed at least 24 people near the offices of Pakistan's main intelligence agency in the eastern city of Faisalabad.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for Tuesday's blast, which also wounded more than 125 people.
A Taliban spokesman said the group was targeting the Inter-Services Intelligence agency, or ISI, in retaliation for the killing of a Taliban commander in the city.
The car bomb ignited gas cylinders at a nearby service station, triggering an even bigger blast that damaged several buildings -- including an office of Pakistan's state airline.
Piles of bricks from the destroyed service station and scraps of metal from damaged cars littered the scene as rescue workers pulled victims from the rubble.
Faisalabad is home to Pakistan's textile industry.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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Medical officials in Yemen say a protester died Wednesday, a day after police and security agents in civilian clothes fired live rounds and tear gas to prevent people from joining anti-government demonstrators in the capital Sana'a.
Officials say at least 80 people were wounded in Tuesday's incident.
Thousands of protesters have camped out for weeks in front of Sana'a University, demanding an end to President Ali Abdullah Saleh's 32-year rule.
The shooting at the campus followed an anti-government riot by inmates at the capital's Central Prison. That unrest began late Monday, when prisoners demanding reforms announced they were joining the protest movement.
Yemeni rights groups said at least two prisoners were killed and 60 people wounded as guards fought to control the situation.
Other rallies were held across the country Tuesday. For the first time since the protests began almost a month ago, a large anti-government demonstration took place in Dhamar province, a ruling party stronghold just south of the capital.
In southern Ibb province, tens of thousands took to the streets, calling on the government to bring to justice those responsible for a deadly attack there Sunday that killed one person and injured 53 others. Protesters also marched in the southern port city of Aden.
Protesters are demanding greater participation in a government largely led by Saleh's closest allies. They say they are frustrated by rampant corruption and soaring unemployment, which is at 35 percent or higher.
Yemeni Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi appealed to rich Gulf countries Tuesday for $6 billion in additional aid to help plug a widening budget gap. Qirbi blamed the unrest on poor economic conditions.
Some 40 percent of Yemen's 23 million people live on $2 a day or less and a third face chronic hunger.
Saleh called for national dialogue during a meeting on Monday, but opposition leaders quickly rejected the offer. The president has said he plans to remain in office until his term ends in 2013.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.
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The United States says a naval strike group led by the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan has entered the western Pacific Ocean and will join an ongoing military exercise with South Korea.
The U.S. military said Wednesday that the giant carrier is accompanied by a guided missile cruiser and a destroyer squadron. The ships will join in the annual Foal Eagle exercise which began early last week involving about 200,000 South Korean and 13,000 U.S. troops.
South Korea has described the drill as a routine defense exercise, but North Korea says it will respond to any provocation by turning South Korea's capital, Seoul, into a "sea of fire."
China strongly objected last year when the United States announced plans to send another aircraft carrier, the USS George Washington, into the Yellow Sea for an earlier joint exercise with South Korea.
The U.S. military said the purpose of sending the USS Ronald Reagan into the region is to "enhance maritime partnerships and promote peace and stability in the region." Its commander, Rear Admiral Robert Girrier, is as quoted saying his forces are "looking forward to every opportunity to enhance our commitment to the region."
This year's Foal Eagle exercise takes place amid high tensions caused by North Korea's deadly artillery attack on a South Korean island in November and the sinking of a South Korean warship last March.
The two attacks killed 50 South Koreans. Pyongyang denies any responsibility for the sinking of the Cheonan, which an international investigation linked to a North Korean torpedo. North Korean officials also claim that South Korea provoked the North's attack on the island.
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Diplomats say the European Union has agreed to impose additional sanctions on Libya.
The officials said Tuesday the measures will target the Libyan Investment Authority and other financial institutions linked to Moammar Gadhafi's government. The diplomats say the EU is expected to formally approve the new sanctions Friday.
In February, the 27-nation bloc announced sanctions against Libya that included an arms embargo, asset freezes and visa bans against the country's top officials.
Meanwhile, an EU diplomat said Tuesday that officials in Libya's foreign ministry have called for a United Nations probe into allegations of violence and human rights abuses in the country.
Also Tuesday, two members of Libya's opposition national council are briefing European parliament members on the turmoil in their country. The two representatives, Mahmoud Jebril and Ali al-Esawi of the Benghazi-based provisional council are meeting with the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, a large liberal voting bloc in the European parliament. The European Union is to hold a special summit about Libya on Friday.
The Arab League announced Tuesday that it will hold an emergency meeting in Cairo on Saturday to discuss developments in Libya.
The head of the Gulf Cooperation Council has condemned killings by Libya's pro-government forces as "massacres." At a meeting late Monday in Abu Dhabi, the GCC secretary-general Abdul Rahman Hamad al-Attiyah said the assaults against Libyan citizens amounted to "crimes against humanity." The grouping of gulf Arab states also urged the U.N. Security Council to establish a "no-fly" zone over Libya.
U.S. President Barack Obama said Monday that world powers are considering a wide range of potential options against Libya, including military action. He also warned supporters of Gadhafi that they would be "held accountable for whatever violence" continues to take place.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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Libyan government forces attacked rebel-held towns Tuesday in eastern and western areas with airstrikes, rockets and artillery, in a continuing offensive against opposition fighters trying to topple leader Moammar Gadhafi.
Libyan warplanes carried out several airstrikes on rebel positions around the eastern oil port of Ras Lanuf, one of them hitting a two-story residential building and causing some damage, but no apparent casualties.
Pro-Gadhafi forces also attacked rebel positions several kilometers to the west, where opposition fighters have set up a checkpoint that represents the farthest they have advanced from their stronghold of eastern Libya.
The rebels made a swift advance to the next town along the coast, Bin Jawwad, last week, but government troops with superior firepower drove them back to Ras Lanuf on Sunday.
Elsewhere, Gadhafi's forces continued an onslaught on the western town of Zawiya, the closest rebel-held community to the Libyan capital, Tripoli. Government officials said Gadhafi loyalists who have besieged Zawiya for days were largely in control Tuesday, though some residents said rebels still held the town center.
Witnesses said government forces were bombarding residential areas of Zawiya, destroying many buildings and flooding its hospital with casualties.
Rebel leaders based in the eastern city of Benghazi said they rejected an offer for dialogue from a Gadhafi representative. They also gave the Libyan leader 72 hours to resign or face prosecution by rebel authorities. The Libyan government denied reaching out to the rebels.
Gadhafi has vowed a fight to the death against rebels who launched an uprising last month against his 42-year rule.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates traveled to southern Afghanistan, the heartland of the insurgency, Tuesday where he met with local villagers and U.S. troops. Gates said the coming months will provide a key test of recent gains made by U.S. and Afghan forces.
On the second day of his visit to Afghanistan, Gates flew from Kabul to Helmand Province's Sangin District to tell U.S. Marines they have made a "major strategic breakthrough" in what he said was once "the most dangerous place on earth."
From there, he flew to neighboring Kandahar, where he walked down a local road, past waving children, to meet with local elders and members of the newly established Afghan local police. Later, at an American combat outpost, he told reporters he was "very encouraged" by what he had seen.
"I do feel like the pieces are coming together, but I would continue to say what we have said all along. The gains are fragile and reversible. The fight this spring and this summer is going to be very tough. We expect the Taliban to try and take back much of what they've lost. And that'll really, in many respects, be the acid test of how effective the progress we have made is going to be," said Gates.
Gates said if U.S. and Afghan forces can sustain the gains during the coming warmer months, the traditional fighting season, it will send what he called "a powerful message."
Military officers say they face a tough challenge in Afghanistan as the weather improves and Taliban insurgents return from neighboring Pakistan to find their fighters dead or captured, and their former strongholds under Afghan and coalition control. Officials expect an increase in militant attacks against local security forces and government officials.
Gates said these former Taliban strongholds in the south will continue to need a strong coalition presence, but that the planned transition to Afghan security control can begin taking place elsewhere in Afghanistan in July.
"Beginning a gradual process that is based on conditions on the ground, that probably won't be here in the south or the southwest to start, probably is doable," he said.
Gates said NATO's decision to continue combat operations for up to another four years helped convince many Afghans to come over to the government side and stop supporting the Taliban. Military officers say they have received an increase in tips from Afghans about insurgent bombs and weapons caches, and they hope this information will also help them fight the expected Taliban counterattack in the coming weeks.
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Women are joining together all over the world to mark the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day on March 8.
Women poured through London's streets on Tuesday singing loudly for women's rights.
The banners they carried trained a spotlight on the range of issues still at hand: health, education, and politics to name a few.
Among the demonstrators in London was the musician and activist Annie Lennox. She said the fight for women's rights isn't over.
"There is still so much work to be done with regards to parity for women, equality for women's rights all around the world - not only in the developed countries," Lennox said. "We're here in the UK [United Kingdom] and there's actually four other marches going across different bridges across the entire world."
The march on London's Millenium Bridge Tuesday signified the Bridge of Peace that organizers say they want to build through conflict zones all over the world.
Women gathered in the conflict-ridden eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo; they gathered in Afghanistan; and they gathered in Iraq.
In London, a number of leading female politicians and activists joined the demonstration. One of them was Dr Habiba Sarabi. In 2005 she was made Afghanistan's first and only female governor. She says she wanted to empower women in her country and show the international community that Afghanistan is moving forward.
"Working as a female governor is not an easy job. It was for the first time in Afghanistan," Sarabi said. "But I did it because I wanted to prove that women can do in a society like Afghanistan something that men can do."
She says her role as governor of Banyam province shows that Afghanistan has come a long way since the Taliban was ousted a decade ago. But she says it hasn't been easy.
"There were so many people who were against me, they wanted to start some activity and also propaganda against me and they started to make demonstrations," Sarabi said. "But anyway I didn't go backward."
Another Afghan activist in London for Women's Day was Asila Wardak Jamal, who co-founded the Afghan Women's Network.
She says empowering women in Afghanistan is hard when many people are still struggling for basic needs like food.
"There are lots of problems still. Security is a big concern and a big obstacle for [the] women's movement and for women's development," Jamal said. "And also violence against women it's a big concern for Afghan women. The violence against women at the familial level and at the societal level, it's increasing. But still there's a way to go."
That's why these women in London said they, and others around the world, turned out for International Women's Day - to keep women's needs at the forefront of the global agenda. Human rights activist and actress Bianca Jagger was at the London rally. She says women can do it together.
"We need to make a difference and that difference can be made by us as mothers," Jagger said. "And we can make a difference for women throughout the world."
Women's Day was first celebrated in Germany in 1911 and is now marked by over 100 countries around the world.
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Police in Ethiopia have arrested 130 people described as religious extremists in connection with a series of church burnings in a Muslim-majority area. Tensions are simmering in a region where Muslims and Christians have lived side by side for generations.
Several U.S.-based Christian websites say Muslim extremists burned dozens of churches near Jimma town in the western Oromia region over the past several days. The websites quote local church members as saying thousands of Muslims had joined in the burnings, and that 4,000 Christians had fled their homes in fear around the small community of Asendabo.
Ethiopian government spokesman Shimelis Kemal told VOA two Christians had been killed in the incidents. In a telephone interview, he said police reinforcements had moved in and restored order.
"In Jimma area, some extremists and some fundamentalists have instigated some people to burn a few prayer places, praying places, and this has been investigated by police and those who are suspected to have set fire on those churches have been apprehended," he said.
Shimelis said 130 suspects had been charged with instigating religious hatred and violence.
One political activist working in Jimma, who asked not to be identified, quoted Muslim residents in the region as saying the attacks erupted after reports spread that a Christian had desecrated a Koran. That information could not be confirmed.
Attempts by VOA to reach police and local church leaders were unsuccessful Tuesday. Moga Firisa, head of the opposition Oromo Federal Democratic Movement and a native of the region, said he was conducting his own investigation. He said the burnings had occurred over a period of several days beginning late last week.
Moga said the trouble had broken out in a place known for communal harmony, where Muslim and Christian families have lived and worked together for as long as anyone can remember.
The most recent census indicates Ethiopia is about 60 percent Christian and 40 percent Muslim, though many Muslims dispute the figures. The area where the trouble broke out last week is predominantly Muslim.
In Russia's Chechnya republic, which has long been a center of anti Kremlin violence in the Caucasus, Ramzan Kadyrov, the young president, now feels his capital is safe enough to invite 50 foreign correspondents for a news conference and an exhibition football match.
Wearing a black velvet tunic with leather epaulettes, Ramzan Kadyrov, 34, the president of Chechnya, had an upbeat message.
Chechnya is winning the battle against terrorism and is now open for foreign investment, he told foreign correspondents at his high walled, tightly guarded compound in central Grozny.
He says Chechnya is winning the war against terrorism, because Chechens realize that extremism is evil and retards development. Human rights critics say that he has used torture and summary executions to beat down the Islamic fundamentalist insurgency.
Asked by VOA how many rebels are fighting in this republic of one million people, President Kadyrov responded with "68."
Kremlin officials estimate that there are about 1,000 rebels fighting in Russia's Caucasus, a mountainous area that stretches from the Black Sea to the Caspian. Viewed from afar, the Caucasus is often a blur. But on the ground, it is clear that the insurgency is shifting among the four Islamic majority republics. Officials say violence is down in Chechnya and neighboring Ingushetia. They say it is up in Dagestan and Kabardino Balkaria.
After two decades of violence, Chechnya now is ruled by a man who is a firm proponent of law and order. Last week, Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev rewarded Kadyrov's success by appointing him to a second term as Chechnya's president. On Saturday, the republic's rubber stamp parliament unanimously voted their support.
Asked about the uprisings in the streets of Egypt, Tunisia and Libya, Chechnya's leader chose to praise the authoritarian governments of China and Saudi Arabia.
Referring to the conservative Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, he said: "In Saudi Arabia, there is order, there is strict government and no one gets out of line."
President Kadyrov also uses a personality cult to try to impose unity on a divided, clan-based society. Asked by VOA about his massive portraits displayed on billboards all over the capital, he joked that "People like to look at pictures of a handsome nice young man."
At the Tuesday news conference, he called on a female aide in a long black dress and tightly wrapped black and orange scarf to explain to reporters why she wears conservative Muslim attire. He talks of his moves to severely limit alcohol sales and his interest in taking on a second wife.
"Money made selling women, drugs, alcohol - this money we do not want," Kadyrov said.
Asked which foreign forces are supporting the rebellions in the Caucasus, Kadyrov's finger does not point to Iran or Saudi Arabia, two Islamic nations often seen as sources of funding. Instead, he focused on the United States.
In the Caucasus, he noted that, America's ally is Georgia.
Pointing to his neighbor, on the south side of a high range of neighbors, he asked: "Why do the Georgians need America? America is on the other side of the ocean."
Kadyrov accused Georgia of training Chechen terrorists, then flying them to Russia, through Europe or Azerbaijan. With Russia embarking on an election year, this is an accusation increasingly heard from officials in Moscow.
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Xinjiang is home to Uighur Muslims and Tibet is home to ethnic Tibetan Buddhists. Both regions have witnessed turmoil in recent years, with conflicts centering largely on differences with the country's majority Han Chinese. But China says it is confident it will maintain social stability in the restive regions of Xinjiang and Tibet.
Chinese authorities accuse forces in both regions of working to break away from China. Many Uighurs and Tibetans accuse Beijing of marginalizing their cultures and repressing their people.
In Beijing Tuesday, Nur Bekri, the chairman of Xinjiang's regional government, said the top priorities there are maintaining stability and fighting separatism.
He says Xinjiang is currently generally stable and improving. But he says the task of maintaining stability is complicated and heavy because the foundations are weak and the situation is still "severe."
Official numbers say nearly 200 people were killed by violent riots in Xinjiang's capital, Urumqi, in 2009.
The Communist Party secretary of Xinjiang, Zhang Chunxian, says he thinks the region's stability depends on whether everyone benefits economically. He says he is confident in and "not at all worried" about Xinjiang's stability. He added that he will learn what he described as "technical" lessons from the Middle East, although he did not provide details.
Chinese police have rounded up scores of dissidents since online messages from abroad urged pro-democracy gatherings inspired by the Jasmine Revolutions in the Middle East.
Officials also have asserted they intend to maintain order in Tibet, which is still recovering from riots in the capital, Lhasa, in 2008.
Qiangba Puncog, of Tibet's National People's Congress committee, acknowledged that the Dalai Lama still has religious clout among Tibetans. But he says the exiled spiritual leader has no political influence, and that China is prepared to maintain stability in the region if the Dalai Lama were to die.
He says because of what he called the Dalai Lama's "special religious impact", the death will come as shock to some people. But he saya the Chinese government has already thought about it thoroughly, and is capable of ensuring Tibet's long-term political and economic stability.
The Dalai Lama is 76 years old and has had health problems in recent years. There is a controversy over the selection of his reincarnation, who by tradition will replace him. The Dalai Lama says the practice may be abolished, but the Chinese government says it is not his decision.
After the death of Tibetan Buddhism's second highest ranking spiritual leader, the Panchen Lama, Beijing refused to accept the Dalai Lama's choice and appointed another boy instead.
The regional officials spoke in Beijing on the sidelines of the National Peoples' Congress, which is holding its annual session.
Popular social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, were instrumental in organizing the non-violent protests that led to the resignation last month of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Some people in Egypt and other parts of the world have also been using other media for ideas on how to remove a dictator. This includes watching TV documentaries on civil disobedience created by a private video company in Washington. The company has also produced video games on ways to use non-violent tactics to enact change.
The York-Zimmerman TV and film company in Washington has produced several documentaries on civil disobedience. Filmmaker Steve York says they have been shown around the world and translated into a number of languages, including Arabic.
"People were using these films as training devices in their own non-violent movements, in their struggles against dictators, or authoritarian or oppressive regimes," he said.
York says one of the most popular films is one called "Bringing Down a Dictator." It documents the non-violent strategies used against former Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic, who resigned after disputed election results in 2000. He was later arrested and tried for war crimes in The Hague, but died before the proceedings finished.
Ivan Marovic, who is in York's film, was a leader in OTPOR, the primary non-violent movement against Milosevic. He was a university student who organized demonstrations.
York-Zimmerman hired Marovic to help create video games - that show non-violent strategies to help remove oppressive governments. The second, and most recent game is "People Power - The Game of Civil Resistance." It contains fictional scenarios in which the leader of a non-violent movement uses tactics such as street protests, strikes and boycotts. Speaking from Belgrade, Serbia, Marovic said people who play the game are likely to be young and educated.
"The game allows you to see all the complexities of a political struggle, and to kind of focus on all the nuances, and all the details that are necessary, in order to make the right move," he said.
York says the video games are the first of their kind.
"It became apparent to us, that people who are engaged in non-violent struggles in places in many countries around the world, simply didn't have materials that would help them learn the techniques," he said.
Jack Duvall, president of the International Center on Non-Violent Conflict in Washington, says the game is also being used in universities.
"Hundreds of political scientists, sociologists, and others at the undergraduate and graduate level have actually embedded the use of these games in their normal curriculum," he said.
The "People Power" video game can only be downloaded from the internet. It costs $10, but York says people can get it for free if they cannot afford to pay for it. He says it has been downloaded in many places.
"Latin America, Eastern Europe, parts of Asia, certainly Africa and the Middle East," he said.
"People Power" is currently available only in English. But York says it will soon also be available in Arabic, Farsi, Russian and Spanish.
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The space shuttle Discovery's crew experienced a first on the shuttle's last full day in orbit. Our correspondent reports on the astronauts' welcome wake-up call Tuesday morning.
If you have to wake up for work, an acoustic solo certainly beats a buzzing alarm clock.
The six astronauts on board the shuttle Discovery were awakened on their last full day in space by the song "Blue Sky," performed live from Mission Control by the lead singer of the American rock band, Big Head Todd and the Monsters.
It was the first time NASA astronauts have ever been awakened by a live musical performance from Houston.
Discovery served as the inspiration for the song "Blue Sky." Big Head Todd and the Monsters wrote it as a tribute for Discovery's return to orbital missions in 2005, two years after the space shuttle Columbia and its crew were lost in a re-entry explosion.
And it was "Blue Sky" that received the most votes in NASA's contest to select which song Discovery's astronauts would wake-up to on the final full day in orbit.
More than 2.4 million votes were tallied in NASA's Top 40 song contest, with "Blue Sky" earning nearly a third of them - more than 722,000 votes.
Discovery's Commander Steve Lindsey congratulated the band on the win and thanked them for the early morning serenade.
The band's lead singer, Todd Park Mohr, thanked the astronauts for their courage and bravery and for inspiring creativity back on Earth.
Commander Lindsey responded:
"We all wish you could see what we can see when we look out at the Earth, and, hopefully, everybody will be able to do that one of these days," said Lindsay. "Hopefully sooner rather than later."
The practice of waking up the astronauts with a song has been a part of the space program since the days of the Apollo program, and it looks as if it will continue through the shuttle program's retirement this year. The public will be able to vote for wake-up songs for the upcoming Endeavour mission on NASA's web site.
The runner-up song for Discovery's final full workday served to wake up the crew Monday morning. The song, well known to space-watchers and spacewalkers alike, raked in more than 671,000 votes.
William Shatner, star of the classic television show Star Trek, even adapted the theme song for the Discovery crew.
March 8th is Discovery's last full day in orbit before the shuttle heads into retirement. Discovery's return to Earth on March 9th will not only complete its final, 13-day mission, but also mark its record 365th day in orbit.
Since Discovery first launched in 1984, it has logged more than 148 million miles in space…the final frontier.
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The Libyan military has stepped up airstrikes on rebel-held Ras Lanouf, as it seeks to stop the westward advance of rebel forces. With the counteroffensive underway, Libya's opposition national council says it is rejecting overtures of talks with the government.
Media reports say the Libyan government denied reaching out to rebels, who want the international community to recognize them as the legitimate leaders of the nation.
The opposition dismisses the idea of talks with the government of Moammar Gadhafi, whose planes continued their attacks Tuesday.
A spokesman for the rebel national council, Mustafa Gheriani, says the offer is just a tactic.
"This guy never delivered on any promise in 42 years," said Gheriani. "What makes you think he's going to deliver on anything today?"
Instead, the self-styled provisional government in Benghazi is hoping other nations will recognize it as the best bet to lead Libya into the future. Gheriani confirms the council has met with an Italian delegation and is now awaiting word from the Italian government.
He adds that he hopes Britain will also try to establish ties, but not repeat the botched effort that saw British officials detained by opposition forces in eastern Libya in recent days.
"Unfortunately the British did not come in a legitimate way but nevertheless we see it as a positive, at least not in a sense that we want to negotiate with them, because they came illegally, but at least there is a good faith effort from the British government," said Gheriani.
In the immediate future, he says, the most pressing need is for the international community to establish a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent additional attacks by the Libyan air force. The idea is meeting with some hesitation on the part of the United States, but received additional backing Tuesday from the Organization of the Islamic Conference.
Rebels have been trying to fend off the strikes around the oil refinery at Ras Lanouf, now in opposition hands, with anti-aircraft guns. Despite the slim resistance those weapons offer, pro-Gadhafi forces have yet to strike the facility.
"The reason he did not bomb the oil facility is he still has hope that he may rule the country," Gheriani explained. "Otherwise he would have bombed them already. And that is why it's very important and urgent on a humanitarian scale and an economic scale to put a no fly zone on this guy."
The Gadhafi government is also appealing to the international community, repeating its call for United Nations' observers to come to Libya to render judgment on the situation. The U.N. began considering a war crimes investigation of actions by the Libyan government just days into the uprising.
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China has brushed off complaints from its neighbors over disputes about maritime boundaries. The rebuff comes after Beijing announced it will be more active diplomatically this year.
A day after Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said Beijing's foreign policy will serve the country's economic development, China reasserted its sovereignty over the resource-rich South China Sea.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu Tuesday brushed off recent protests from the Philippines and Vietnam following separate incidents in the disputed waters.
Jiang says China holds indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea.
She says China seeks to solve disputes with friendly consultation with other countries.
Several other nations claim parts of the South China Sea.
The Philippines president last week said his government formally protested to Beijing after two Chinese naval boats harassed a Philippines oil exploration team in a contested area.
Vietnam objected to Chinese counter-piracy drills near the disputed Spratly islands.
The protests add to growing calls from Southeast Asian leaders for a code of conduct for economic and military activity in the disputed waters.
The South China Sea and other waters near China's coast contain vital shipping lanes and may be rich in oil and gas reserves.
China claims most of the South China Sea as its own and has resisted signing a set of rules.
Japan recently complained after run-ins with Chinese vessels near islets Tokyo controls, but Beijing claims.
Foreign Minister Yang told journalists Monday that Beijing will this year focus on what he calls "summit diplomacy" this year in a "comprehensive" and "coordinated way". He made the comments on the sidelines of the National Peoples Congress going on this week.
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An adviser to the United Nations on the conflict in Somalia warns the country's ongoing crisis is encouraging terrorism activities in Kenya and other neighboring countries, which he says could destabilize the entire Horn of Africa region.
Mustapha Ali, who is also the secretary-general of the African Council of Religious Leaders, says Kenyans are expressing concern after police named 11 suspects under investigation for terrorism activities.
"It seems that the goings on in Somalia and across to the Kenyan border is now spilling over in terms of the people who do not mean any good in the country," said Ali.
"After the bombs that went off in Kampala [Uganda], it is clear that there were some Kenyans who were involved in the planning and carrying out of the actual attack," he said. "There is a high likelihood that people who have been trained in Somalia could still pose a great danger to Kenyans."
The suspects, police say, are linked to the Somalia's hard-line insurgent group, al-Shabab. The group has been fighting African Union forces, as well as the national army, to overthrow the internationality-backed Somali Transitional Federal Administration.
The group has often threatened to unleash terror attacks in Kenya.
Ali says the entire Horn of Africa region could be threatened if the ongoing crisis in Somalia is not quickly resolved.
"It is very clear that al-Shabab poses a great risk to Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania and Ethiopia, particularly Uganda and Burundi, those countries that have sent forces to the African Union Peacekeeping forces in Mogadishu [Somalia]," said Ali. "There is a need to engage in dialogue with the [Somali] Transitional Federal Government and other anti-peace elements in Somalia. Without that, it is going to be very difficult to resolve the issues. One of the key issues is to resolve the Somali [instability] issue; that is the problem and it is going to cause problems across the Horn of Africa in the coming years."
Ali also says some Kenyans do not hold confidence in the ability of the police to apprehend and prosecute the suspected terrorists.
"Kenya has professional intelligence service and they have been doing some good work in the past in apprehending the suspected terrorists. [But], I still have my doubts, though, about the hard approaches that have been used to apprehend the would-be terrorists," said Ali.
"I will always recommend [a] soft approach, aside from addressing the problems in Somalia. We must find ways to ensure that the young people are not radicalized, they are not indoctrinated and continue to join the ranks of al-Shabab in Somalia and in the region," he said.
China's crackdown on corruption has cast a shadow over the powerful Railways Ministry. Former Railways Minister Liu Zhijun has been fired and there are accusations that more than $100 billion is missing.
The widening probe into graft has raised calls for the government to reconsider its investment in high-speed railways.
China boasts some of the fastest trains in the world and has embarked on an ambitious project to link many cities by high-speed trains.
Modernization
The $274 billion plan is part of an infrastructure policy costing hundreds of billions of dollars. The government aims to build at least 30,000 kilometers of track over the next few years: nearly half of it for high-speed trains.
But the new railways minister, Sheng Guangzu, has had to defend the plan from a barrage of criticism.
Much of it begins with the recent firing of Liu Zhijun, who was the railways minister for eight years. There are accusations that under his administration $121 million was embezzled.
Other railway officials have been fired and detained for corruption.
At least one proposal to slash the high-speed rail project is to be presented to a top advisory group during the annual session of the National People's Congress this week.
But the new railways minister says Liu's firing will not affect the plan.
The World Bank's railways expert Richard Bullock, who works with the government on development projects, says Liu's dismissal is unlikely to derail the modernization plans.
But he says Liu's successor has made significant changes.
"The new minister has put some emphasis on two areas," says Bullock. "They are safety and procurement mechanisms. These are indications in changes of management style."
If the expansion plan is completed, China will have the second-largest rail infrastructure in the world after the United States. But the railways scandal follows questions about the economics of the high-speed project, much of it funded by loans.
Railway expansion criticized
Some critics say the network seems extravagant given China's vast size and relatively low per capita income. They say to pay back the loans tickets will have to be priced so high they will be out of the reach of most Chinese.
Even the national research institution, the Academy of Science, reported last year that at current investment and estimated passenger numbers, the trains will never collect enough in fares to repay construction loans.
The vast amount of money tied to railway projects, and real estate deals linked to them, has provided ample opportunity for graft.
That has led to fears over the long-term safety of the tracks and other parts of the network.
Endemic graft
Corruption is a significant problem in China, and the communist government has tried to crack down on it. Liu's dismissal is seen as significant as top Communist Party officials are rarely fired for corruption.
Wang Yukai, an anti-corruption expert at the Chinese Academy of Governance, says Liu's firing shows the government is no longer turning a blind level to corruption in high office.
And he says it's important to give the media, Internet, and the public the power to decipher and understand what goes on in government ministries such as the railways. That, he says, is an important way to solve the problem of corruption, which, Wang points out, is very deep in China.
Past campaigns to weed out corrupt officials have largely been seen to have failed. Premier Wen Jiabao said in his opening speech at the National People's Congress on Saturday that ridding the country of corruption is a priority, because graft helps foster discontent.
But Liu's firing could act like a double-edged sword. On one side, it indicates that leaders are showing no favor in the latest clean-up campaign. Yet, on the other, it may reinforce to the public the idea that corruption is rife at all official levels.
26-year-old rail passenger Meng Qingyi, who works for a steel company, says it's a good thing the government has fired some one as high-profile as Liu.
But he hopes the corruption scandal will not derail the high-speed plan because fast trains are important to Chinese like him.
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Thousands of Brazilians and foreign tourists are partying in the streets of Rio de Janeiro, where the city's famed Carnival festivities are in full swing.
Carnival parades have been taking place since Sunday, with fireworks and cheers of revelers who have been celebrating for days. Several processions have been staged, featuring extravagant floats with celebrities and scantily dressed bejeweled dancers from several competing samba schools.
Last month, a massive fire swept through the city's warehouse district, destroying thousands of elaborate costumes and floats that had taken nearly a year to make.
Watch related video of carnival
Some information for this report was provided by AP.
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Some bands are birthed after months of auditions, trying to find just the right lyricist to mesh with an incredible singer and stellar guitar player. Others are more of a happy accident. The Wailin' Jennys fall into that latter category. The group began at a one-time-only show in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. But the band is still going strong four CDs later.
The title track is the only non-original song on the new Wailin' Jennys CD. It's a traditional song called "Bright Morning Stars" done a cappella, or without instruments, and featuring vocals by all three Jennys.
Their name might be a takeoff on the late country star Waylon Jennings, but The Wailin' Jennys are serious about making good music. Their first CD, 2004's 40 Days, earned them a Juno Award, the Canadian equivalent of the Grammy, while also winning great acclaim in the United States. Bright Morning Stars, is home to 12 original songs and is their first release since 2009. In the years between, the band exploded on the roots music scene, and their new CD hit the top spot of the Billboard magazine Bluegrass chart two weeks after its release.
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Bright Morning Stars is built around The Wailin' Jennys three part harmonies. If there is a theme to the disc, it might be love and loss. The CD opens with "Swing Low Sail High," featuring writer Nicky Mehta singing lead.
The Wailin' Jennys Nicky Mehta is described as a "trained dancer raised on classical music." She's the Jenny who wrote "Sing Low Sail High" and also sang lead on the track. In 2002, Nicky formed The Wailin' Jennys with Ruth Moody, a classically trained pianist and vocalist-turned-folk musician. Ruth wrote and sings lead on four of the songs on "Bright Morning Stars", including "Asleep At Last."
The third member of The Wailin' Jennys is Heather Masse, the lone U.S. native. She joined in 2007, bringing with her a background in jazz. Like her two band mates, Heather is also a songwriter and contributed four tracks to Bright Morning Stars, including "Cherry Blossom Love" which showcases the bands harmony singing.
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World bodies meet this week to consider how to respond to the escalating violence in Libya.
Two members of Libya's opposition national council are briefing European parliament members on Tuesday on the turmoil in their country.
The two representatives, Mahmoud Jebril and Ali al-Esawi, of the Benghazi-based provisional council are meeting with the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, a large liberal voting bloc in the European parliament. The European Union is to hold a special summit about Libya on Friday.
The Arab League announced Tuesday that it will hold an emergency meeting in Cairo on Friday to discuss developments in Libya.
Meanwhile, the head of the Gulf Cooperation Council has condemned killings by Libya's pro-government forces as "massacres." At a meeting late Monday in Abu Dhabi, the GCC secretary-general, Abdul Rahman Hamad al-Attiyah, said the assaults against Libyan citizens amounted to "crimes against humanity." The grouping of gulf Arab states also urged the U.N. Security Council to establish a "no-fly" zone over Libya.
U.S. President Barack Obama said Monday that world powers are considering a wide range of potential options against Libya, including military action. He also warned supporters of Gadhafi that they would be "held accountable for whatever violence" continues to take place.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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Libyan rebels fighting to topple Moammar Gadhafi's government say a representative of the Libyan leader offered to hold talks with rebel leadership, but the offer was rejected.
A rebel spokesman said Tuesday that an offer had been made, but said the rebels will not negotiate with Gadhafi. Representatives of Gadhafi have not commented on such a proposal.
On Monday, members of the rebel-led governing council in Benghazi rejected an appeal for dialogue by former Libyan Prime Minister Jadallah al-Talhi. They said no peace talks are possible unless Gadhafi steps down.
In the appeal aired on state television, Talhi, who served as Libya's ambassador to the United Nations in 2008, asked the rebels to give negotiations a chance in order to resolve the crisis and help stop the bloodshed.
Pro-Gadhafi forces continued their counter-offensive against rebels Tuesday, launching at least one new airstrike on the oil port of Ras Lanuf, after several attacks the previous day.
Gadhafi loyalists have been trying to prevent the rebels from advancing toward the capital, Tripoli.
The Libyan leader remains in control of Tripoli, his main power base in the country's west, as well as his hometown of Sirte, 500 kilometers east of the capital. He has vowed a fight to the death against opposition fighters who last month launched an uprising against his 42-year rule.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Talhi's appeal is part of an effort by reform-minded government officials to push a plan calling for Gadhafi to cede power to a council of technocrats who could shepherd a transition to democratic reforms.
But in an interview with the pan-Arab satellite channel Al-Arabiya, one of Gadhafi's sons said Libya would descend into civil war if his father stepped down. Saadi Gadhafi warned the country would turn into a new Somalia.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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