Azerbaijani police arrested more than 200 opposition protesters during Saturday’s demonstrations in Baku. They were calling for the resignation of President Ilham Aliyev and had broken through police cordons into Fountains Square. According to the Azeri Interior Ministry, five will face criminal charges for property damage and resisting police. Seventy people have been punished for attending the anti-government demonstration.
Around 30 demonstrators were arrested at a protest demanding the release of Private Bradley Manning on Sunday. The demonstration was held at the Quantico marine base in Virginia, where Manning is being held in solitary confinement.
Another US protest held this weekend resulted in the arrest of 113 anti-war activists. The man who leaked the Pentagon Papers was among those detained. They were protesting near the White House to commemorate the eighth anniversary of the Iraq war. Police made the arrests after warning activists to stop marching round the White House.
Security forces clashed with demonstrators in Damascus on Tuesday, detaining at least 35 protesters, including a 10 year old boy. The Syrian demonstrators, who demanded the release of political prisoners, ignored a ban on all demonstrations and protest marches in the capital.