This morning’s key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com.

Half a million people protest in Hama, Syria

Protests in Hama on Friday (AFP)

Despite a bloody, brutal assault on the city of Hama by Syrian security forces earlier this week, half a million protesters were undeterred, and filled the streets of Hama on Friday, demanding the fall of the regime of president Bashar al-Assad. Many feared a bloody new massacre by security forces on Friday, but the arrival of the U.S. ambassador to Syria, Robert Ford, later joined by the French ambassador, Eric Chevallier, inhibited the Syrian regime. VOA

The Syrian regime has reacted with fury at the U.S. involvement with the protests in Hama, by sending its ambassador to the center of the anti-government protests there, and showing solidarity with the protesters. The presence of Ford, along with his French counterpart, Eric Chevallier, encouraged an even higher turn-out at Friday’s demonstration and infuriated the Assad regime. Syria’s foreign ministry said it was “proof” that America was instigating events in Syria, and “disturbing internal security and stability.” Telegraph

U.S. – Pakistan relations once again significantly worsen

U.S. chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, publicly accused Pakistan’s security agency of murdering journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad, who dared to probe the Islamabad government’s murky dealings. Speaking at the Pentagon Press Association, he said that the torture and murder were “sanctioned by the government,” and he said that the killing was part of a pattern. He added that Pakistan was continuing “to, quite frankly, spiral in the wrong direction.” Globe and Mail

Last space shuttle takes off

For the last time ever, astronauts used the space shuttle on Friday to slip the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God. For the first time in two generations, there is no schedule for a resumption of human spaceflight in an American spacecraft after Atlantis completes its massive restocking mission to the International Space Station. From now on, all astronauts going to the International Space Station will have to travel in Russian space ships. Houston Chronicle

Gaddafi shouts defiant threat at Nato

Speaking in an audio message on state TV, Muammar Gaddafi threatened and lashed out at Nato. Shouting loudly, Gaddafi said, “The enemies of the masses will fall under the feet of the masses, under the marching of the masses. The collaborators and traitors will fall — east and west — and NATO will fall under the feet of the Libyan masses, under the feet of the free Libyan people!” AP

Egypt’s protesters hold ‘March of the Million’

Friday’s “March of the Million”, as protesters are calling the new uprising, flooded Cairo’s Tahrir Square with pro-democracy protesters, demanding immediate reforms and swifter prosecution of former officials from the toppled government of Hosni Mubarak. Al-Jazeera

The world has a new country – South Sudan

As of Saturday, July 9, the world has a new country, South Sudan. According to a statement by the government of Sudan, “The Republic of the Sudan has officially announced its recognition of the secession of the republic of south Sudan as sovereign state as of today Saturday according to existing borderline between south and north Sudan of 1956 acknowledged prior to the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA).” Sudan Vision