Egyptian vigilantes crack down on abuse of women
CAIRO — The young activists lingered on the streets around Tahrir Square, scrutinizing the crowds of holiday revelers. Suddenly, they charged, pushing people aside and chasing down a young man. As the captive thrashed to get away, the activists pounded his shoulders, flipped him around and spray-painted a message on his back: “I’m a harasser.”
UN warns Syrian rebels over human rights violations
BEIRUT — The top U.N. human rights official warned opposition fighters in Syria on Monday that they would not be immune from prosecution for atrocities, as videos from the Syrian city of Aleppo appeared to show a mass execution by rebel fighters of bound and blindfolded Syrian government soldiers.
France says it would recognize provisional Syrian government
BEIRUT — France’s president urged the Syrian opposition movement Monday to create a provisional government and vowed to extend official recognition once it was formed.
Egypt’s military rulers deny role in fatal clashes
CAIRO — Egypt’s temporary military rulers delivered a sweeping defense of their tenure Thursday, saying they were committed to handing over power to a civil authority by the end of June, and denying any role in clashes the day before that left at least 11 people dead.
Fighters enter Gadhafi stronghold city as toll rises
TRIPOLI, Libya — Fighters battling Moammar Gadhafi’s loyalists Monday entered the coastal city of Sirte from the east as residents fleeing the besieged city, one of the loyalists’ few remaining strongholds, warned of an escalating toll from the fighting. The foray by the former rebels, backed by a heavy bombardment from NATO warplanes, brought them to a traffic circle more than a mile from the city center, Reuters reported. In recent days, the rebels have struck deep into the city from the west, only to be beaten back by heavy resistance from Gadhafi fighters ensconced in the city.
Libyan government presses rebel assault in east and west
RAS LANUF, Libya — Government warplanes taunted rebels with flyovers and repeatedly bombed their positions near this coastal city’s oil refinery Monday, seeking to drive the opposition forces back farther to the east, as Libya continued what appeared to be a slide into civil war.
Four found guilty in plot to bomb synagogues in the Bronx
NEW YORK — Four men were convicted Monday on charges of planting what they believed were bombs outside synagogues in the Bronx and plotting to fire missiles at military planes.