In brief: Prime minister steps down

Cairo, Egypt – Egypt’s military rulers announced the resignation Thursday of Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq – an apparent concession to opposition activists who are calling for a broad purge of former regime figures as Egypt plods toward a more democratic system.

A brief statement on the military’s website said former Transportation Minister Essam Sharaf had been named the new prime minister and would soon form a caretaker Cabinet to steer Egypt back to civilian authority.

The move came one day before thousands of protesters are expected to take to the streets of Cairo and other major Egyptian cities to press for a shakeup of the military-led government amid persistent suspicions that the country is still being run by cronies of former President Hosni Mubarak, who was forced from office Feb. 11 after 30 years in power. Mubarak is now thought to be in the resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh.

Soldiers kill six in women’s march

Abidjan, Ivory Coast – Soldiers backing Ivory Coast’s defiant leader mowed down women protesting his refusal to leave power in a hail of gunfire Thursday, killing at least six and shocking a nation where women’s marches have historically been used as a last resort against an unrestrained army.

Because the president’s security force has shown almost no reserve in opening fire on unarmed civilians, the women decided this week to organize the march in the nation’s commercial capital, assuming soldiers would be too ashamed to open fire.

But at least six of the thousands of women demonstrating Thursday were killed on the spot.

The three-month old conflict in Ivory Coast has entered a new level of intensity. With each passing day, the regime of Laurent Gbagbo is proving it is willing to go to any length to stay in office following an election that international observers say he lost.