The Greek government knows that without further financial aid, it will

run out of

cash by mid-October; it also knows that no more bailout money will come its way unless it lives up to its promises and reduces its budget deficit to 7.6%. It has raised taxes and cut spending, but staffing in the public sector has not been reduced; tax collection is a shambles, and its privatisation programme has

barely

started. The question is whether Greece has reached a tipping point where further austerity will be

resist

ed, whatever the consequences for the country.

Libyan fighters loyal to the country's interim government say they've captured key parts of the southern city of Sabha from forces loyal to Colonel Gaddafi. A spokesman for the National Transitional Council, Ahmed Bani, told a news conference in Tripoli that the council's forces had captured the airport as well as a fort in Sabha.

"Our forces there in the airport and the Libyan canal since two hours ago. Our flags are waving there over the airport and another part of Sabha, we call it the castle Fort Elena, traditional Fort Elena the castle."

At least 27 people have been killed in the capital of Yemen, Sanaa, in escalating violence between opponents of President Saleh and forces loyal to him. A journalist in Sanaa told the BBC that protesters were caught in artillery clashes between

defect

ing soldiers and Mr Saleh's supporters. He said he'd seen several bodies and many wounded people at a makeshift hospital at a mosque.