UNITED NATIONS

Muammar Gaddafi launched a land and air offensive to retake territory in Libya's east at dawn on Wednesday, sparking a rebel call for foreign air strikes against African mercenaries they said were helping him cling to power.

Fears of a supply disruption arising from continued unrest in Libya have pushed up oil prices, but a leading Libyan oil official warns they could spike even higher if there is no immediate resolution to the ongoing violence.

The United Nations General Assembly suspended Libya from the Human Rights Council, expressing its deep concern over the killings of hundreds of anti-government protesters in the country.

The top two U.S. defense officials have not confirmed if the Libyan government has been firing on its own people from aircraft.

The United Nations has called for an epic humanitarian evacuation of people seeking to escape Libya for Tunisia, citing the “crisis point” conditions at the border between the two countries.

China, the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitter, wants rich nations to vow bigger cuts to emissions as part of a new international deal on fighting global warming, Beijing's top climate negotiator said on Tuesday.

Libya could descend into civil war if Muammar Gaddafi refuses to quit, the United States said on Tuesday, its demand for an end to his rule carrying new weight after word of unspecified Western military preparations.

Continuing anti-government protests has brought tens of thousands of people to the capital of Yemen, again demanding the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, one day after he proposed the formation of a new unity government which would include opposition members.

Within weeks from declaring 2011 to be Mexico's “year of tourism,” the country's president Felipe Calderon said that the government aims to make Mexico the world's top fifth tourism destination by 2018.

The United States is taking financial action to block Lybia's leader and his family from using $30 billion-worth of assets in the country.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Sunday that that the United States is reaching out different Libyans as the Obama administration calls for Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to leave the country.

An international refugee crisis is developing on the Libya-Tunisia border as thousands of people are pouring into Tunisia, fleeing the carnage in neighboring Libya.

The full text of resolution 1970 (2011) adopted by the UN Security Council on Feb. 26, 2011 imposing sanctions on Libya.

President Barack Obama has called Moammar Gaddafi to step down as leader of Libya, citing that the regime’s brutal crackdown on protesters questions the legitimacy of his rule

The United Nations Human Rights Council has unanimously recommended suspension of Libya from the Geneva-based body in response to bloody crackdown launched by the Libyan government on protesters.

Government forces shot dead at least two protesters in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Friday, television stations reported, as a popular uprising against Muammar Gaddafi closed in on his main power base.

The United Nations Human Rights Council has condemned the ongoing violence in Libya and ordered an international probe into alleged abuses carried out by government forces against protesters.

Reports from Libya claim heavy fighting in the capitol city of Tripoli with anti-government protesters coming under heavy gunfire from troops and mercenaries in support of leader Moammar Gaddafi.

The United States and Turkey have discussed a range of options with regard to the situation in Lybia, the White House said Friday.

Gold and Silver Prices failed to hold onto a sharp overnight bounce in London trade on Friday, trading below $1404 and $33 respectively per ounce as volatility in crude oil remained at record levels but world stock markets rose for the first day in six.

Political leaders around the world have almost universally condemned the government of Moammar Gaddafi for its brutal crackdown against anti-government protesters. At least 3000 people have died in the bloodshed that appears to be getting worse by the day.