Here are the latest developments in unrest sweeping the Middle East and North Africa.
LIBYA: The West edged closer to military action against Muammar Gaddafi as the United States said air strikes would be needed to secure a no-fly zone over Libya and as regime forces tried to retake a key city.
- Enforcing a no-fly zone would first require a military operation to destroy Libyan air defence systems, top US commander General James Mattis warned.
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- Top US defence leaders said NATO states have yet to agree on any military intervention, adding that imposing a no-fly zone would be "extraordinarily" complex.
- US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Libya was at a crossroads in its history and "the stakes are high."
- British Prime Minister David Cameron said the international community must not let Gaddafi murder his own people.
- Western governments choked off funding to the Gaddafi regime after the United Nations and European Union imposed sanctions.
- EU leaders will hold a special summit in Brussels on March 11 aiming to deliver a response to the Libya crisis and turmoil in the Arab world.
- Anti-regime leaders in Benghazi said they have formed a military council in the eastern Libyan city which has become the hub of efforts to topple Gaddafi.
- The UN refugee agency said the situation on the Libya-Tunisia border was reaching crisis point as desperate expatriate workers poured across, fearful of a bloody rearguard action by diehard regime elements.
- Gaddafi's son Seif al-Islam denied that the regime had attacked civilians.
- The UN General Assembly suspended Libya from the UN Human Rights Council.
- The International Criminal Court prosecutor announced Monday a preliminary probe of possible crimes against humanity committed in Libya.
- Libyan rebels said on Monday they were resuming oil exports.
OMAN: Omani forces backed by tanks disperse protesters who have been massed at a key roundabout in the industrial city of Sohar, blocking access to the port and the coastal road to Muscat.
YEMEN: Huge crowds poured onto the streets of the Yemeni capital Sanaa in what the opposition hailed as the biggest protest yet against the three-decade rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
- Saleh sacked the governors of five provinces where anti-regime protests have raged for more than a month.
BAHRAIN: Thousands of Bahrainis took to the street in an anti-regime protest heading to Pearl Square, the focal point of demonstrations for over two weeks.
- Crown Prince Salman said on Monday efforts were under way to launch talks with the opposition, which is demanding major political reforms.
EGYPT: The public prosecutor slapped a ban on ousted president Hosni Mubarak and his family from travelling abroad, and also imposed a freeze on their assets.
TUNISIA: Two more ministers left Tunisia's interim government on Tuesday following the resignations of the prime minister and two other ministers after weeks of protests about the caretaker authority.
- Amnesty International accused Tunisian security forces of "murder" in their crackdown on protesters in the uprising that toppled Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January, and demanded an enquiry.
- Italy will send humanitarian aid to Tunisia to help as many as 10,000 refugees fleeing Libya, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi decided at a cabinet meeting late Tuesday, a government source has said.
KUWAIT: Kuwaiti opposition groups on Tuesday intensified their demands for the sacking of the prime minister, blamed for stalling development in the oil-rich Gulf state.
ALGERIA: Algeria wants priority to be given to ending the bloodshed in Libya, the foreign minister said in media reports Tuesday, urging a return to order in its neighbour.
IRAQ: Iraq's prime minister - who has warned his cabinet to shape up within 100 days or face "changes" - apologised to a reporter after the journalist alleged assault at the hands of security forces during massive demonstrations in Baghdad last week.
JORDAN: Calls for a constitutional monarchy in Jordan were growing ahead of a parliamentary vote of confidence on the new government, as the Islamist opposition called a pro-reform protest for Friday.
SAUDI ARABIA: Saudi shares dived 6.8 percent to a 20-month low on Tuesday amid panic sell-off by investors concerned over unrest that has hit several Arab countries, traders and analysts said.
- More than 100 academics, activists and businessmen have called for major reforms including establishing a "constitutional monarchy" in the Gulf kingdom, in an Internet statement.
IRAN: Iranian security forces on Tuesday fired tear gas in Tehran clashes with anti-government protesters demanding the release of two opposition leaders, opposition websites reported.
