REUTERS - Greece faces key austerity vote, more strikes, Oct 19, 2011

By Renee Maltezou and Ingrid Melander

ATHENS | Wed Oct 19, 2011 6:17pm EDT

(Reuters) - Angry protesters vowed to bring Greeceto a standstill on the second day of a general strike on Thursday while disgruntled lawmakers vote on the details of a deeply unpopular austerity package needed to stave off bankruptcy.

Parliament is expected to give a final green light late in the day to the belt-tightening plan required by the EU and the IMF, after backing it in principle in a first reading on Wednesday despite the country's biggest labor action in years.

But some ruling party MPs have warned they may vote against one of the bill's most controversial provisions, threatening to weaken the beleaguered government's narrow majority as it battles a debt crisis that is shaking global markets.

Thousands of police will be deployed through central Athens after black-clad youth clashed with riot police on Wednesday, pelting them with petrol bombs and chunks of marble during an anti-austerity march that drew more than 100,000 protesters.

THE GUARDIAN - 'Tunisia elections are a good thing, but we mustn't throw the revolution away', Oct 19, 2011

Tunisians speak of their hopes for the future as the country holds first free elections since overthrow of Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali

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• Angelique Chrisafis in Sidi Bouzid
• guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 19 October 2011 12.26 BST
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A week before Tunisians vote in their country's historic general election, protesters gathered to demand free speech Link to this video

Along the main street of the desolate, rural town where Tunisia's revolution started, people watched from the pavement as a new kind of demonstration filed past.

First came a slow-moving truck carrying a group of 10-year-old boys waving religious banners, shouting: "Allah is great!" Then came a crowd of 100 to 200 people chanting: "Your god has been insulted, come out and defend him!"

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CNN News - In Syria, protests mutate to armed resistance amid economic meltdown, Oct 19, 2011

By Arwa Damon and Tim Lister, CNN

October 19, 2011 -- Updated 1915 GMT (0315 HKT)

Supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stage a pro-regime rally in Damascus earlier this month.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Opposition to the al-Assad regime is becoming more organized and armed
• Violence is also taking on sectarian overtones
• Along with the increased violence, the Syrian economy is worsening

(CNN) -- The cell phone video stutters as it records the movement of soldiers and Syrian militia on the streets from an upstairs window. A whispered commentary describes the scene. Another video shows vehicles riddled with bullet holes, shattered apartments, glass shards and concrete lumps mixed with patches of blood. In yet another, protesters flee as heavy-caliber weapons fire ricochets off buildings.

All are scenes purportedly filmed in recent days in Homs, Syria's third-largest city. Security forces have sealed off entire neighborhoods; others are blocked by barricades thrown up by protesters. At night, street rallies take place in areas "liberated" from government control. The many videos uploaded on social media sites, as well as residents' accounts, suggest some neighborhoods in Homs -- at the heart of opposition to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad -- are beginning to resemble Sarajevo at the height of the Bosnian civil war.

CBS News - Libya PM: Qaddafi recruiting for a comeback, Oct 19, 2011

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Libyan rebel fighters fire their machine guns toward loyalist positions in down town Sirte, Libya, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011. (AP Photo)

Anger In The Arab World

• Endgame in Libya
• The future of Libya
• Libya's future

• Libya PM: Qaddafi recruiting for a comeback
• Report: U.S., Euro arms used against Arab Spring
• Complete Coverage »

(AP)

TRIPOLI, Libya - Libya's acting prime minister said Wednesday that ousted leader Muammar Qaddafi is believed to be recruiting fighters from other African countries and preparing for a possible insurgency, hoping to destabilize Libya's new regime.

The comments by Mahmoud Jibril reflected fears that Qaddafi will be able to use friendly relations with neighboring countries cultivated during his more than four decades in power to help him launch a bid to return to power.

"Reports have shown that 68 vehicles with at least eight fighters each crossed the Libyan borders to Mali and Qaddafi is hiding in the southern desert," Jibril told reporters.