The Syrian regime, trying to walk a fine line between staying in power and avoiding the ire of the international community, abruptly announced a general amnesty for “crimes” committed during the uprising, which began last March. The fact that this is the fourth such amnesty issued by Bashar al-Assad during the uprising probably blunts the impact, and opposition spokesmen dismissed it.

At the same time Obama is publicly supporting the King of Bahrain, there’s word the White House is considering military actions in support of Libyan revolutionaries – but there’s a problem. The revolutionaries don’t want it.

The UN Secretary condemns the violence as the pro-Mubarak hired thugs continue to try to create chaos.

I’m interested in the Ivory Coast story because of a) the past inability for a peaceful transition of power on the African continent, which is a serious foreign policy problem, and b) the potential for mass death. Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary General of the UN, raises the threat of the second.