10 Jul 11
Two bombs in Taji, north of Baghdad, killed at least 35 people. Violence in Iraq is on the rise, six months before the planned departure of American troops.
Around 98.5% of Moroccan voters approved a new constitution proposed by King Mohammed VI, who faced pro-democracy protests earlier this year.
Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, the former dictator of Tunisia, was again convicted in absentia, this time of illegally possessing drugs and weapons. Ben Ali fleed Tunisia in January and now resides in Saudi Arabia.
The German parliament questioned the sales of 200 tanks to Saudi Arabia because of the country’s poor human rights record and participation in the crackdown on protesters in Bahrain in March.
06 Jul 11
The International Criminal Court in the Hague issued arrest warrants for Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, his son Saif Al-Islam, and his intelligence chief Abdullah Al-Senussi, on charges of crimes against humanity. Meanwhile rebel forces continued their advance on Tripoli.
Clashes erupted in Cairo’s Tahrir Square between police and people protesting against the slow pace of reform. Egypt’s prosecutor-general said he would form a committee to investigate the violence.
At least 150 opposition figures met in public in Damascus, Syria, to declare their support for the uprising and call on Bashar Assad to end his government’s crackdown. Syria’s army withdrew from Hama, where at least 73 people were killed since clashes erupted in June.
26 Jun 11
Demonstrations and killings continued in Syria after a speech by president Bashar Assad, who called for a national dialogue and promised reform. Assad said an election would be held in August but with no hint that his ruling Baath party would allow any opposition to compete.
Tunisia’s ousted president, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, and his wife were sentenced in absentia to 35 years for corruption and fined US$ 66m.
Dozens of Al-Qaeda members escaped from a prison in the port city of Mukalla in Yemen.
In Bahrain, eight pro-democracy campaigners, all Shias, were given life sentences for “plotting to overthrow the government”.
A series of bombings in Iraq killed at least 35 people, predominantly in Diwaniya, south of Baghdad. The attacks were presumed to have been carried out by Sunni extremists linked to Al-Qaeda.
Mahmoud Abbas and Khaled Meshal, leaders of respectively Fatah and Hamas, cancelled a meeting at which they were meant to select a prime minister. The news came as a blow to Palestinian hopes of unity.
18 Jun 11
At least 8,500 Syrians fled to Turkey after government troops entered the town of Jisr al-Shughour near the border. Demonstrations continued to spread across the country. Russian and Chinese governments seemed likely to block a UN Security Council resolution condemning the crackdown.
Five months after being nominated as prime minister of Lebanon, Najib Mikati, a Sunni supported by Hizbullah, at last got parliament to vote him formally into office.
Tunisia’s interim government said that ousted dictator Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali will stand trial in absentia on charges ranging from corruption to drug-trafficking.
A party created by the Muslim Brotherhood agreed it would form a front together with the Wafd, an old liberal secular party that used to cooperate with the previous regime, to compete in Egypt’s general election scheduled for september.
18 Jun 11
Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh underwent treatment at a hospital in Saudi Arabia after being wounded during an attack on his compound on June 3rd. He may not return to Yemen. Fighting and strife continued in many parts of the country.
Protests against Syria’s government continued and intensified. According to the regime, “armed gangs” in Jisr al-Shughour killed 120 members of security forces, though these claims could not be verified. At least 70 protesters were killed in Hama.
Tunisia’s interim government postponed the country’s first election since the January revolution to October 23rd, citing technical reasons.
Hundreds of Palestinians living in Syria tried to breach the Israeli border on the Golan heights. At least eight were killed.
04 Jun 11
Civil war looms in Yemen as at least 80 people were killed in clashes between tribal fighters and security forces in Sana’a and Taiz. Jihadists captured Zinjibar, a coastal town east of Aden.
Turmoil in Syria continued, with at least 42 people being killed since May 27th.
Bahrain lifted a state of emergency, which was in place for two-and-half months, with the help of Saudi and Emirati forces.
Five generals were among the 120 soliders who defected from Colonel Qaddafi’s regime in Libya.
29 May 11
US president Barack Obama in a speech celebrated the Arab Spring and promised financial aid to those transition countries seeking to build a democracy. But he annoyed Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu by stating that Israel’s border with Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with swaps.
NATO ramped up its air attacks on Tripoli, capital of Libya, and deployed Apache attack helicopters.
Prosecutors in Egypt announced that former president Hosni Mubarak and his two sons would be tried on a series of chargers including murder.
Scores of Yemenis were killed in clashes with security forces as President Ali Abdullah Saleh continued to reject a deal which would require him to leave office within 30 days.
21 May 11
At least 14 Palestinians were shot when they sought to cross Israel’s border with Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and Gaza. The demonstrators were marking the day of naqba, the term Palestinians use for Israel’s birth in 1948.
Shokri Ghanem, oil minister of Libya, was reported to have defected. He is the highest-ranking official to abandon Colonel Qaddafi since the foreign minister fled in March.
Yemen’s government and an opposition coalition came close to striking a deal that would end the three-month long crisis. Under the plan, brokered by the GCC, President Saleh would step down within 30 days and a unity government would be formed.
Nabil el-Araby, Egypt’s foreign minister, was elected secretary-general of the Arab League, thereby replacing his fellow countryman Amr Moussa.
17 May 11
The Syrian government held talks with several veteran dissidents, while security forces continued to fire on protesters in Homs, Syria’s third-most-populous city. Scores of protesters were killed. Protests ensued in Aleppo as well.
Libyan rebels strengthened their grip on Misrata, reportedly capturing the airport. Misrata is the city closest to the capital Tripoli.
17 May 11
Syria’s government continued it’s crackdown on protests resulting in scores of deaths. More than 450 people are reported to have died since the protests started six weeks ago. There were calls from the international community to impose sanctions on Bashar Al-Assad’s regime.
Former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was ordered to be moved from a hospital in Sharm el-Sheikh to a military medical facility, before being taken to a prison hospital in Cairo. Mubarak and his two sons seem likely to be tried to corruption and ordering troops to fire on demonstrators shortly before his regime fell.
A deal brokered by the Gulf Cooperation Council proposed that Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh step down. Opposition parties have agreed to the deal, though pro-democracy protesters are not pleased that Mr. Saleh is to be granted immunity from prosecution.
Mahmoud Abbas’s secular Fatah party, which runs the West Bank, and the Islamist movement Hamas which controls the Gaza Strip, agreed to be reconciled following a bitter five-year quarrel. Under the agreement, the Palestinian factions say they will form a unity government and fix a date for elections.
The battle for Misrata, the only remaining rebel enclave in western Libya, continued. Colonel Qaddafi’s forces withdrew from the city but the rebels came under heavy fire from the leader’s artillery outside.