Do you agree or disagree with the protestors?

Hundreds protest treatment of alleged WikiLeaks whistleblower

By the CNN Wire Staff

March 21, 2011 8:33 a.m. EDT

Protesters: WikiLeaks suspect a 'hero'

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Hundreds of demonstrators protest the treatment of Army private
• 1971 Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg among the protesters
• Ellsberg and retired Army Col. Ann Wright are among dozens arrested

Washington (CNN) -- Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the gates of Quantico Marine Base in Virginia Sunday to protest the treatment of Bradley Manning, who is being held at the base prison on charges that he released classified government documents to the site WikiLeaks.
Among them were Daniel Ellsberg, the 1971 Pentagon Papers leaker and Retired U.S. Army Col. Ann Wright, both of whom were arrested along with at least 31 other protesters, according to rally organizers. See a CNN.com exclusive interview with Ellsberg in which he talks about his kinship with Manning.
The 23-year-old Army private is accused of giving WikiLeaks hundreds of thousands of classified military and State Department documents, and is awaiting a military decision on whether he will face a court-martial.
The protesters marched near the base, carried placards, shouted slogans, chanted "Free Bradley Manning" and left flowers in front of an Iwo Jima monument at the entrance of the base. Supporters of Manning and WikiLeaks also made speeches deploring Manning's alleged treatment and asserting that the dissemination of secret military documents is vital for democracy.

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Secy. Clinton spokesman out

Later police arrested dozens of protesters for apparently blocking an intersection leading to the base. Prince William County police did not provide CNN information about the arrested protesters Sunday night, including what possible charges they might face.
Reports that Manning has been held in near-total isolation and forced to sleep without clothing during his nearly eight-month detention has sparked outrage from human rights and peace activists. The controversy even played a hand in the resignation of now-former State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley, who reportedly suggested that the Defense Department is mistreating Manning.
Ellsberg told CNN that Crowley "acted honorably and boldly" for uttering the remarks that resulted in Crowley's departure. Crowley called the treatment of Manning at the hands of the military "ridiculous and counterproductive and stupid."
Ellsberg called Manning's detention illegal.
"The president could change this treatment of him. Apparently, (President Barack Obama) has been told by the Defense Department that this is appropriate," Ellsberg said. "That's a terrible commentary on our standards, which means that they feel free to use illegal measures against someone in their custody."
Ellsberg said the Marines holding Bradley should not wait for an order from Obama "to stop disobeying the law."
Ellsberg said his opinion is shared by legal experts across the country.
"As a Marine I am ashamed that the corps is doing this," said Ellsberg, "and I would like to see them stop it."
Sunday evening, the protesters put their grievances in a open letter addressed to Obama and Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
In addition to Ellsberg and Wright, the letter is signed by a number of musicians and actors, including Rosanne Cash, Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Danny Glover and Viggo Mortensen.
The Obama administration has said repeatedly that Manning is being treated properly.
David House, a friend of Manning's, disputes that. House told CNN that he has visited Manning nine times since the soldier was taken into custody. House said that his friend recently appeared to be in "decline mentally and physically."
House said Manning also has been reluctant during recent visits to discuss his treatment. Manning's attorney has said that, among other things, his client has been put on suicide watch and forced to stand at attention while naked.
Military officials have said Manning has been forced to sleep naked to prevent him from committing suicide.
"There can be no conceivable justification for this type of degrading treatment," the letter from the activists says. "It brings back memories of the abuses committed in Abu Ghraib, which blackened the reputation of America's armed forces," said the letter, referring to an Iraqi prison that was the center of a prisoner abuse scandal.
The letter demands an immediate investigation into the conditions of Manning's detention.
On Sunday, many of the 400 supporters, peace activists and veterans tried to enter an administrative building to deliver a letter to Base Commander Daniel Choike, but were stopped by police.
It was the second straight day of rallies -- and arrests -- for many of the protesters, including those from antiwar groups Veterans For Peace, Iraq Veterans Against War and Code Pink, who attended a demonstration in front of the White House on Saturday to mark the eighth anniversary of the war in Iraq.
For Ellsberg, Sunday marked his second arrest for the weekend.

Ellsberg famously leaked thousands of classified documents -- dubbed the Pentagon Papers -- that revealed that top American officials were actively concealing the "unwinnable" reality of the Vietnam War from the public.

What is Terrorism?

Witnesses: Fresh air strikes hit eastern Libyan towns

By the CNN Wire Staff

March 3, 2011 7:17 a.m. EST

Libya: Battle for Brega

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Eastern towns bombed in Libya, witnesses say
• The International Criminal Court will announce an overview of the alleged war crimes
• An Arab League statement rejects foreign intervention
• Plans to investigate Gadhafi are not objective, a government spokesman says

Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- Two towns in eastern Libya were bombed for a second day Thursday, witnesses said, hours after the government denounced reports of attacks on protesters and military facilities.
Two bombs were dropped on military camps in Ajdabiya, a tribal leader said.
Another bomb fell in al-Brega between the oil facility and the airport Thursday, but there were no injuries or damage, witnesses said.
The attacks come a day after ground and air attacks on al-Brega, which has key oil and natural gas facilities.

Bombing in Libyan oil town

Gadhafi warns against intervention

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Libyan army reclaims crossing

On Wednesday, aircraft dropped bombs near the town and troops loyal to Moammar Gadhafi launched a ground attack, witnesses said. Aircraft also bombed military camps on the outskirts of Ajdabiya on the same day, witnesses said.
While CNN has staff in some cities, the network cannot independently confirm reports for many areas in Libya. CNN has gathered information through telephone interviews with witnesses.
Protesters calling for the ouster of longtime leader Gadhafi have taken to the streets for a third week amid clashes with government forces. He has been in power for nearly 42 years.
"We need tribal intervention, social intervention to help us convince these people to come to the negotiating table," Musa Ibrahim, the government spokesman, told CNN's "AC360."
"This is an armed rebellion, with people going around attacking police stations, army offices, getting a hold of guns and attacking."
The government spokesman said that assertions of military attacks on demonstrators are wrong. The government had supported peaceful protests, he said, but reiterated accusations that al Qaeda supporters have hijacked the movement and are triggering chaos.
"We have captured dozens of these people, we have figures, we have interviews, we are willing and prepared to take these people and show them on international media," the spokesman said.
More than 1,000 people are reported to have been killed and many more injured during the protests, according to the United Nations. Libya's ambassador to the United States has estimated that the death toll was about 2,000.
The International Criminal Court will announce Thursday an overview of the alleged war crimes since the protests started last month.
"Following a preliminary examination of available information, the prosecutor has reached the conclusion that an investigation is warranted," the ICC said in a statement.
Ibrahim slammed plans to investigate the alleged war crimes and said the decision was based on reports without any fact-finding mission into the country.
"The international community's reaction toward what is happening in Libya has not been very honest and transparent,"
he said.
"The Security Council, for example, based its agreement against Libya on reports without any fact-finding mission, without visiting Libya, without allowing Libya to defend itself."

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CNN crew witnesses air bombing in Libya

Egyptian refugees escape Libya

RELATED TOPICS

• Libya
• Moammar Gadhafi
• Libyan Politics
• International Criminal Court
• United Nations Security Council

Libya is not a signatory to the Rome Statute, which created the ICC, and does not recognize the authority of the international court. But the United Nations Security Council referred the matter to the court, essentially giving it "jurisdiction" over the situation in Libya.
The clashes in Libya have gone on for days, with the bombings in al-Brega on Wednesday happening as Gadhafi addressed his supporters.
News of the bombings could support calls for the imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent such attacks. The United States has said all options are on the table and is weighing a possible military role, but Arab League officials have also rejected foreign military intervention in Libya.
"We perceive what happened and what is happening is an internal affair that is decided by the people and their governments," the Arab League said in a statement.
Gadhafi spoke with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday about a proposal to bring an international mediation team to Libya, Venezuela's information minister said.
The demonstrations -- which follow protests in neighboring Egypt and Tunisia that ousted those countries' leaders -- have sparked criticism from world leaders.
Nations have scrambled to evacuate scores of citizens as the unrest continues.
The Netherlands defense ministry said Thursday that three Dutch navy personnel were captured by armed men loyal to Gadhafi during an evacuation operation Sunday. The ministry did not release information earlier because of safety reasons.
The capital city of Tripoli remains under Gadhafi's control, though opposition forces have taken control of the eastern city of Benghazi and a number of other cities.

The U.N. refugee agency reported that nearly 150,000 people had crossed Libya's borders into Egypt and Tunisia, and thousands more were arriving hourly at the borders.

Middle Eastern Uprisings: Per Capita Income and Unemployment Comparison

Find CNN's comparison tool for the uprisings in the Middle East here.

Find the online tool for creating your own graph here.

Choose to create an XY graph. Make a bubble graph. Create a graph with the per capita GDP represented in the X axis and the unemployment rate represented in the Y axis. In "size," enter the country's population. In "Line Width," choose "No line." Email me your graph, then respond to these questions in a blog comment:

1. Is there a positive or negative correlation between per capita income and unemployment?
2. Is country population relevant or important in this graph? If so, how? If not, why do you think they included this information?
3. Think about your answer to question one. What conclusions can you draw about this?
4. Seeing as all of these nations are currently experiencing protests and uprisings, and knowing what you know about their per capita wealth and unemployment rates, what solutions can you recommend for quelling the protests?
5. Using unemployment and per capita GDP data, predict another country in the world you believe might experience similar protests in the future.

Synthesis: "A Death in Tehran" and Current Events--MUN 3/4

Today we watched an update on the situation in Bahrain, as well as the Frontline documentary "A Death in Tehran." Combine what you learned from these videos, as well as what you have seen lately in the Middle East, to draw a conclusion.

Police Use Tear Gas on Iranian Protesters

BBC News

Read this article on the BBC website about protests today in Tehran, Iran. Answer these questions:

1. Do you predict the protests in Iran will have results similar to those in Egypt? Why or why not?

2. Check Twitter. Summarize one tweet, posted video, or link to another article--it must be something that wasn't covered in the BBC article.

3. According to our article, "The [Iranian] government says the mass protests were inspired by Iran's 1979 revolution, while the opposition says its 2009 protests encouraged the unrest." Do you think either of them are right? Explain.

4. Do you think preventing Iranians from protesting will make them reduce unrest in Iran, or make it worse? Explain.

Profiles: Multinational Terrorism

Your blog posting will be a summary profile of one of the terrorist groups identified by the National Counterterrorism Center. You can find links to introductory information about these groups here.
Make sure to include:

• The name of the group
• The date established
• The countries or regions where the group primarily operates
• The mission of the group
• Important attacks, conflicts, or events in the group's history
• A brief summary of what your Global Classrooms country's position would be toward the group

Everyone must profile a different group. Let me know when you have selected yours.

News Briefs

Find a world news article on one of the following websites, and summarize in 3-5 sentences on this blog.

nytimes.com
washingtonpost.com
guardian.co.uk
english.aljazeera.net