The brewing civil war in Libya is likely to drag in much of the region, Central Africa as well as North Africa and the Middle East. Already rumors suggest that this is coming true.

Yesterday, reports originating in the Saudi-owned daily Asharq al-Awsat claimed that Libyan rebels brought down two Syrian planes ostensibly assisting Qaddafi loyalists. The Syrian media is denying the report. As for anti-Qaddafi support, Robert Fisk reported that Riyadh is helping to arm the Libyan rebels at the request of the Obama administration. The Saudis, too, are denying that they played any part. The Saudi columnist and editor-in-chief of Asharq al-Awsat Tareq Homayed writes that this is “misinformation” planted “with the help of some of Iran’s allies in our region”—i.e. Syria.