Gates of Vienna News Feed 2/16/2011

Unrest has begun in earnest in Libya. Protesters thronged the streets of Tripoli to demand the ouster of Col. Qaddafi. Violence and demonstrations continue across North Africa and parts of the Middle East.

Meanwhile, refugees from Tunisia continue to pour into Italy. Widespread drunkenness among the arrivals on the island of Lampedusa led to a ban on the sale of alcohol to the refugees. The EU has promised to send €100 million to Italy very soon to help them cope with the crisis.

On a somewhat related note, Iran has sent warships through the Suez Canal into the Mediterranean for the first time since the Iranian revolution in 1979, which caused a 32-year rift between Iran and Egypt.

To see the headlines and the articles, open the full news post.

Thanks to C. Cantoni, DF, Fjordman, Insubria, JD, Nick, Steen, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Commenters are advised to leave their comments at this post (rather than with the news articles) so that they are more easily accessible.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. We check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.