Top stories from DAWNS Digest.
Cairo on the Edge
Tense times as Egypt frays. “Egypt’s political crisis entered a tense new phase on Wednesday after international mediation efforts collapsed and the army-installed government repeated its threat to take action against supporters of deposed President Mohamed Mursi. Both sides called their supporters on to the streets on Thursday, while Mursi supporters in two protest camps in Cairo strengthened sandbag-and-brick barricades in readiness for any action by security forces.” (Reuters http://reut.rs/193TlIQ)
The Deteriorating State of the Central African Republic
ICYMI: #CARTroubles got frontpage treatment on the New York Times. “Nowadays, the rebels cruise conspicuously in their Toyota Hilux pickups in the sparse traffic here, ragtag fighters from the lawless north, some of them Chadians, turbaned or wearing looted fatigues, guns bristling. Rifle-wielding boys as young as 12 have been spotted in the trucks. The men are accustomed to living in the bush, but in the capital there is not much left to steal. Many of the battered storefronts are shuttered or empty. The citizens keep their distance; everyone has an abduction story.” (NYTimes http://nyti.ms/193YkcE)
US Pledges More Humanitarian Aid to Syria
President Obama marked the end of the Ramadan holiday by pledging an additional $195 million in humanitarian aid to people in Syria. “Many of us have had the opportunity to break fast with our Muslim friends and colleagues – a tradition that reminds us to be grateful for our blessings and to show compassion for the less fortunate among us, including millions of Syrians who spent Ramadan displaced from their homes, their families, and their loved ones,” said the statement by Obama. (VOA http://bit.ly/1cxcF5p)