(CNN) -- Demonstrations have spread across parts of the Middle East and North Africa. Here is the latest from each country and the roots of the unrest.
Wednesday developments:
YEMEN
A Yemeni man injured in protests at Sanaa University died of his wounds early Wednesday morning, a medical official said.
Mohamed Ali Mutlak, 24, was among dozens of anti-government demonstrators wounded Tuesday when security forces fired into the air and shot tear gas into a crowd of tens of thousands of protesters who had massed in front of Sanaa University, witnesses said.
Eight of them were still in critical condition, said Dr. Waseem Qurashi, head of the medical department at Change Square, Sanaa University.
Roots of unrest:
Protesters have called for the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has ruled Yemen since 1978. The country has been wracked by a Shiite Muslim uprising, a U.S.-aided crackdown on al Qaeda operatives and a looming shortage of water. High unemployment fuels much of the anger among a growing young population steeped in poverty. The protesters also cite government corruption and a lack of political freedom. Saleh has promised not to run for president in the next round of elections.
LIBYA
In the face of relentless international pressure and a mounting death toll, a defiant Moammar Gadhafi stuck to his assertion that youths misled and drugged by al Qaeda were to blame for the spiraling civil war in Libya "For them, everybody's their enemy," Gadhafi said in a speech aired on Libyan state television Wednesday. "They know nothing other than killing."
Shortly before midnight Wednesday, Gadhafi arrived at a hotel in the capital city Tripoli where about 100 journalists had been waiting for nine hours.Surrounded by his security detail, he strode into the lobby, waved at the throng of reporters, pumped his right fist several times into the air, retreated to a private room for an interview with a Turkish journalist, then left via a back door without addressing the reporters.
The interview was to air later Wednesday on Turkish television.
Roots of unrest:
Protests in Libya started in February when demonstrators, fed up with delays, broke into a housing project the government was building and occupied it. Gadhafi's government, which has ruled since a 1969 coup, responded with a $24 billion fund for housing and development. A month later, more demonstrations were sparked when police detained relatives of those killed in an alleged 1996 massacre at the Abu Salim prison, according to Human Rights Watch. High unemployment and demands for freedom have also fueled the protests.
TUNISIA
A Tunisian court issued a ruling Wednesday dissolving the Rally for Constitutional Democracy, the party of ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
This comes after Tunisia's Interior Ministry announced Monday that it is dissolving its "political police" and the entire State Security Division, which was widely unpopular under the former regime, according to the country's news agency, Tunis Afrique Presse.
Roots of unrest:
The revolt was triggered when an unemployed college graduate set himself ablaze after police confiscated his fruit cart, cutting off his source of income. Protesters complained about high unemployment, corruption, rising prices and political repression.
An interim government came to power after an uprising prompted autocratic President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to leave the country on January 14. Those demonstrations helped spark protests around North Africa and the Middle East.
EGYPT
Six people were killed in sectarian clashes in the Egyptian capital Cairo Tuesday evening, the Coptic Church spokesman Abdelmaseeh Baseet said Wednesday. The country's health ministry said the figure is lower, but did not offer one. The interior ministry said it was unaware of the incident.
Several hundred people showed up for a pro-women demonstration in a major Cairo square on Tuesday -- including some men who chanted anti-feminist slogans. Egyptian activists had called for a Million Woman March on Tuesday, demanding "fair and equal opportunity for all Egyptian citizens -- beyond gender, religion or class."
Roots of unrest:
Complaints about police corruption and abuses were among the top grievances of demonstrators who forced President Hosni Mubarak from office. Demonstrators also were angry about Mubarak's 30-year rule, a lack of free elections and economic issues, such as high food prices, low wages and high unemployment. Since Mubarak's departure, several thousand people have protested in Cairo's Tahrir Square to urge Egypt's new rulers to implement promised reforms. They pressed Egypt's Supreme Council to end an emergency law and release political prisoners, among other things. They also demanded civilian representation in government.
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN OTHER COUNTRIES
IRAN
Security forces in Iran's capital used tear gas to disperse protesters near Revolution Square Tuesday, according to the website of opposition leader Mir Hossein Moussavi. Iran's opposition movement called for demonstrations to mark International Women's Day, and the security presence and car honking was widespread throughout Tehran.
Iran's opposition movement called for demonstrations to mark International Women's Day on Tuesday.
There were few signs of protests, but the security presence and car honking was widespread throughout Tehran.
Thousands of Basij security forces were patrolling Revolution Square and other major squares and intersections in Tehran on Tuesday. According to the website of opposition leader Mir Hossein Moussavi, security forces used tear gas to disperse some protesters near Revolution Square.
Cars honked in an apparent show of protest and security agents ripped off the license plate of a car that was honking.
The driver apologized and the plate was returned. Two young women in a car said something to several members of the Basij. The agents took out cell phones and photographed their license plate before they drove off.
Some of those patrolling appear to be teens.
Roots of unrest:
Opposition to the ruling clerics has simmered since the 2009 election, when hundreds of thousands of people filled Tehran streets to denounce President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election as fraudulent. Iranian authorities began rounding up many government opponents in February amid calls for protests like those that have swept across North Africa and the Middle East.
SYRIA
A prominent Syrian human rights lawyer has been released from prison.
Attorney Haitham Maleh -- arrested in October 2009 during a government crackdown on lawyers and activists -- has been freed, his son told CNN on Tuesday.
"I just talked to him on (the) phone and he was on his way home," Iyas Maleh said, confirming the release.
The release came as Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad on Monday issued pardons for prisoners, including some who are elderly and ill. Such pardons are made annually during this time of year, the anniversary of the Baathist party seizure of power in Syria.
The 80-year-old Maleh and other prisoners were not identified in the Syrian News Agency report announcing the pardons. The move comes amid demands by many restive citizens for more economic prosperity, political freedom and civil liberty.
Roots of unrest:
Opponents of the al-Assad government allege massive human rights abuses, and an emergency law has been in effect since 1963.
SAUDI ARABIA
Amnesty International on Monday urged Saudi Arabia to stop the "outrageous restriction" of peaceful protests.
Coming off two days of demonstrations, Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry warned Saturday that it would crack down on protesters who continue to take their grievances to the streets.
Saudi security forces will be "authorized to take all measures against anyone who tries to break the law and cause disorder," the ministry said, according to state-run news agency. An Interior Ministry spokesman said that kingdom law prevents all kinds of demonstrations, protests, strikes and even a call for them because they're against Sharia law and Saudi values and traditions.
"The Saudi Arabian authorities have a duty to ensure freedom of assembly and are obliged under international law to allow peaceful protests to take place," said Philip Luther, deputy director of the human rights group's Middle East and North Africa program.''
"They must act immediately to end this outrageous restriction on the right to legitimate protest."
Roots of unrest:
Demonstrators have demanded the release of Shiite prisoners they feel are being held without cause. Others have taken to the streets over the creation of a constitutional monarchy, more rights and other reforms.
Late last month, King Abdullah announced a series of sweeping measures aimed at relieving economic hardship and meeting with Bahrain's beleaguered monarch.
BAHRAIN
A large number of people protested outside the palace where Bahrain's cabinet was meeting Sunday, the first time a protest had been allowed at the site.
Protesters chanted slogans calling for the downfall of Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa Bin Salman Al-Khalifa, many waving 1-dinar bills to criticize his purchase of the Bahrain Financial Harbour development for that amount in 2005.
The protest, which lasted about 2 1/2 hours, was peaceful and broke up before the cabinet meeting ended.
Anti-government demonstrators continue to camp out in Bahrain's Pearl Roundabout, where seven people died when security tried to clear the area.
More than 500 people have been injured in Bahrain since the protest began in mid-February. A few dozen of those remain in the hospital, four of them in serious condition, said Nabeel Rajab, the president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights.
Protesters initially took to the streets of Manama to demand reform and the introduction of a constitutional monarchy. But some are now calling for the removal of the royal family.
Crown Prince Salman bid Hamad Al Khalifa addressed the nation on television, saying that a consensus has emerged around 70% to 80% of the people's demands, according to a government statement.
Roots of unrest:
Protesters initially took to the streets of Manama to demand reform and the introduction of a constitutional monarchy. But some are now calling for the removal of the royal family, which has led the Persian Gulf state since the 18th century. Young members of the country's Shiite Muslim majority have staged protests in recent years to complain about discrimination, unemployment and corruption, issues they say the country's Sunni rulers have done little to address. The Bahrain Center for Human Rights said authorities launched a clampdown on dissent in 2010. It accused the government of torturing some human rights activists.
IRAQ
Masked attackers burned tents of protesters overnight in the main city of Iraq's Kurdistan region, police said Sunday.
Hundreds of demonstrators gathered later in the day in Sulaimaniya for another protest against Massoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan regional government, witnesses told CNN.
The unrest in northern Iraq that erupted three weeks ago has killed five people and injured 158 so far, the head of the emergency health department, Dr. Nozad Ahmed, said.
Separately, the head of an independent Kurdish radio station in Kalar, 150 kilometers (93 miles) south of Sulaimaniya, said Sunday that gunmen attacked the broadcast facility and destroyed or stole equipment overnight.
Protesters in the Kurdish region, mostly in Sulaimaniya, are demanding political reforms from Barzani's regional government and the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party. Like protests in other areas of Iraq, the demonstrators also complain of corruption, unemployment and poor public services.
Roots of unrest:
Demonstrations in Iraq have usually not targeted the national government. Instead, the protesters are angry over corruption, the quality of basic services, a crumbling infrastructure and high unemployment, particularly on a local level. They want an end to frequent power outages and food shortages.
ELSEWHERE
Sporadic demonstrations have erupted in recent weeks in other Middle Eastern and northern African nations, such as Algeria, Djibouti, Mauritania, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Kuwait, and Sudan, and in the Palestinian territories.
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