NPR 2011-04-02

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The United Nations confirms at least seven of its international workers, both staff and guards, were killed today in northern Afghanistan when protesters stormed the office and opened fire. Officials at UN offices in New York say the final count could be higher with casualty figure still uncertain, as NPR's Quil Lawrence explains.

It's a small office. Many people were reported to be wounded, but again details are unclear. But certainly across the country, UN personnel are on security lockdown, and people are waiting to see if these protests might escalate¹ or spread to other places in Afghanistan.

NPR's Quil Lawrence on a deadly attack today stemming from protests over reports that a Florida pastor² had burned a copy of the Muslim holy book, the Koran. The presidents of Afghanistan and the US condemned³ the bloodshed.

Anti-government Libyan rebels in the western city of Misrata say forces loyal to leader Muammar Qaddafi have unleashed⁴ another intense bombardment on the city. As NPR's Eric Westervelt tells us, two rebel representatives have fled Misrata by boat to try to warn the international community of the deteriorating⁵ conditions on the ground.

Misrata rebel envoy⁶ Dr. Suleiman Fortia, one of the two who fled by boat to the rebel stronghold of Benghazi, says conditions in Misrata are miserable⁷. There's extremely limited water and electricity, he says, as well as a shortage of baby food and formula and some medical supplies. Dr. Fortia says Qaddafi forces are using tanks, mortar⁸ rounds and other weapons to regularly pound the rebels' last western enclave.

"We have every day about 30 to 35 casualties, dead, daily."

UN special envoy Abdelilah Al-Khatib, who visited Benghazi today, said the UN is increasingly worried about worsening conditions in Misrata and called again on the Qaddafi regime to urgently allow unfettered humanitarian⁹ access to the beseiged city. Eric Westervelt, NPR News, Benghazi.

Tens of thousands of protesters jamming the main square in the capital of Yemen today in what may have been the largest demonstrations¹⁰ yet against the country's long-time ruler. Opposition's hoping a turnout of a million people in protest across that country to press for the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The unemployment rate in the US is down to a two-year low of 8.8% after the economy added 216,000 jobs in March. Many of the gains were in the private sector¹¹, as Mark Zandi, chief economist¹² of Moody's Analytic¹³, explains.

"The private sector is now really kicking in and providing a lot of jobs, and hopefully we'll continue to see that a month ahead."

At last check on Wall Street, the Dow was up 56 points at 12,376 in trading of four billion shares. Before the close, NASDAQ had gained nine points. It was 2,790.

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The United Nations is calling on Ivory Coast's UN-certified president-elect to rein¹⁴ in his forces as they battle for military control of the main city Abidjan. NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton reports talk of serious human rights violations¹⁵ underway.

The office of the UN Human Rights Commissioner¹⁶ accuses Alassane Ouattara's loyalists of abductions, arbitrary arrests and the ill-treatment of civilians¹⁷. UN spokesman Rupert Colville says these alleged¹⁸ abuses must stop. 

"There should be no revenge acts taking place. The forces should show restraint. They might wish to bear in mind that an International Commission Inquiry¹⁹ is already being set up, and they might also want to remember that the International Criminal Court is engaged in Cote d'Ivoire"

There are also persistent²⁰ reports that security forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo are targeting and killing²¹ civilians. Ofeibea Quist-Arcton, NPR News, Accra.

Britain is still debriefing²² Libya's ex-Foreign Minister Musa Kusa, the highest-ranking member of the Qaddafi regime, to resign. He defected to Britain earlier this week and immediately encountered damands to be put on trial for his alleged role in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988. The attack over Lockerbie, Scotland killed 270 people.

No evidence of spring in parts of New England today. Areas got walloped by heavy snow. Other parts are seeing a mix of rain and snow. [The] National Weather Service says the storm moved further eastward²³ than predicted, generating the potential for up to a foot of snow in some towns.

I'm Lakshmi Singh, NPR News in Washington.