A total of 47 prisoners were executed in Saudi Arabia, including a well-known Shiite cleric who had criticized the government and sparked protests in the past.

The US Department of State has chosen hard-partying rocker Andrew W.K. to serve as Cultural Ambassador to the Middle East, inviting him to visit the island nation of Bahrain to promote — what else? — "partying and world peace."

In March, doctors and nurses in "key US ally" Bahrain were being assaulted by government troops for treating injured pro-democracy protesters. And today, 47 doctors and nurses were arraigned on charges that they tried to topple the government.

The U.S.-backed monarchy in Bahrain has apparently killed, arrested and terrorized enough doctors and pro-democracy protesters that it feels the state of emergency can be lifted on June 1st. Victory.

Staunch U.S. ally Bahrain, fresh off a violent crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, is now going to put doctors and nurses who treated injured protesters on trial in a military court. Someone's loving all of the attention bin Laden is getting.

Bahrain's government is destroying the Pearl roundabout, a major plaza in the capital Manama that had become the central gathering place for protesters in recent weeks. That means that the elegant structure at its center, the Pearl Monument, has already been razed.

After Bahrain's security forces entered the capital's Pearl roundabout to "cleanse" it of antimonarchy protesters and attacked hospitals yesterday, the country's rulers today arrested at least six prominent opposition members. According to the AP:

Before dawn this morning, security forces in Bahrain attacked Manama's Pearl roundabout — the focal point of that country's month-long antimonarchy protests — killing at least six, setting fires and firing teargas. But they didn't stop there. According to a doctor who spoke to CNN, Yousif Sharaf, a hospital in Manama has been attacked, too:

Saudi Arabian troops entered Bahrain on Monday, answering "a request by Bahrain for support" in the face of that country's increasingly bold anti-government protests. (The BBC clarifies what the Saudi media meant by "support": "It is believed they are intended to guard key facilities such as oil and gas installations and financial institutions." Which sounds about right.) The troop commitment is one part of a deployment by the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which besides Bahrain and Saudi Arabia counts among its members Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (the latter of whom has committed 500 police officers). The UN and the U.S. have encouraged restraint and dialogue; and, thanks to those Saudi troops, the oil installations and financial institutions will remain open for as much restraint and dialogue as possible. [BBC]

Saudi Arabia has sent roughly 1,000 troops into neighboring Bahrain to buttress the shaky royal regime there in the face of relentless street protests, according to Al-Jazeera. And the United Arab Emirates has "dispatched a security force" to preserve order.

Bahrain's ruling monarchy, no longer able to contain growing protests, has called in for help from Saudi Arabia. An adviser to the Khalifa family, Nabeel al-Hamer said, "Forces from the Gulf Cooperation Council have arrived in Bahrain to maintain order and security." According to AFP, 1,000 troops from Saudi Arabia's Gulf Peninsula Shield Force entered Bahrain yesterday. This could get ugly.

USA Today reports that over 800 people were injured today when the government of Bahrain called in plain clothes thugs and police to disperse protesters in the capital, Manama.

As deadly fighting in several Libyan cities continues, reports claim that an elite British SAS unit was captured by rebels. Meanwhile, protesters in Bahrain are stepping up pressure on the ruling elite. Here's what's happening across the Middle East.

The struggle to oust Muammar Qaddafi from power in Libyan has essentially become a civil war, and anti-government protests are showing few signs of letting up from Algeria to Iraq. Here's the latest from the Middle East and North Africa.

The UN Security Council is meeting today to discuss Libya, while Muammar el-Qaddafi continues to kill his own people. Also, parts of Tripoli are fighting back. Here's a look at what's happening across the Middle East and North Africa today:

Muammar el-Qaddafi seems to being going with a scorched earth-lite policy of dealing with protesters in Libya — he's allegedly hired African mercenaries to bolster his troops, who have been wantonly killing civilians and shooting people at funerals.

After killing protesters in their sleep, Bahrain's ruling monarchy says demonstrators can stay in Pearl roundabout and they've offered to hold talks with all opposition members. Yemen is still going off, and Human Rights Watch says 84 people have been killed in Libya over the last three days. Here's a look at what's happening across the Middle East and North Africa.

In your finally Friday media column: New York Times reporters under fire, Jack Griffin unceremoniously canned at Time Inc., Joe Conason leaves the New York Observer, and executive moves at CBS News.

Bahrain's U.S.-backed King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa sent riot police in to attack sleeping protesters early this morning in Manama's Pearl Square, killing at least five people.

Whatever coalition remains from the defeated Iranian uprisings of 2009 hit the streets again today for demonstrations, hoping to build on momentum from the 2011 Tunisia-Egypt Wave of Freedom Everywhere. After all, the Iranian regime had been encouraging the demonstrations in Egypt; why shouldn't it allow such protests in its own streets? Because then the Iranian regime might get overthrown, duh.