Syria, Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Catching Up

1845 GMT: Reuters posts the accounts of residents of the southern town of Daraa about the "inhumanity and criminality" of the military that occupied the town: "They occupied several mosques, including the Omari mosque and Sheikh Abdul Aziz (mosque), to ensure that even volunteers or imams cannot use minarets to ask for blood or urge medics to help the wounded....They stationed tanks even in public gardens and security patrols seem to have orders to shoot on the spot."

One activist said at least 18 people were killed by gunfire and tank shelling.

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The Latest from Iran (25 April): Supporting the Workers

May Day Poster of Detained Labour Activists1900 GMT: The Battle Within. Another important snippet from the press conference of Iran Prosecutor General Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei (see 1448 GMT)....

Mohseni-Ejei said the managing director of the State news agency, Ali Akbar Javanfekr, had been summoned to court, and he stressed that the Ministry of Intelligence belongs to the "nezam" (system).

That is a sharp slap-down for the Ahmadinejad camp. Javanfekr was a Presidential advisor before taking over IRNA, and the news agency had backed Ahmadinejad's office over the forced resignation of Minister of Intelligence Heydar Moslehi.

Iran Video Special: Claimed Footage of Ahwaz Protests
The Latest from Iran (24 April): Noticing Syria

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WikiLeaks Feature: The Revelations About Guantanamo Bay (Rosenberg and Lasseter)

This morning, WikiLeaks has begun the publication of 779 individual assessments by US authorities of former and current Guantanamo detainees. WikiLeaks has put up 67 of the files so far; meanwhile, seven news organisations have been given the entire set to prepare stories.

See also Obama Special: How the Administration Abandoned Its Promise to Close Guantanamo (Finn and Kornblut)

We begin coverage with the article from Carol Rosenberg and Tom Lasseter for one of those news outlets, McClatchy....

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Syria Video Feature: Death All Around to the Cry of "Peaceful, Peaceful"

First, a note about the video that is not here. Last night, I saw a 7 1/2-minute clip, purportedly from Daraa in Syria on Friday. It begins with the sound of gunfire as a cameraman goes to the ground. When he gets up, he is surrounded by the dead and wounded.

The next few minutes are so graphic, even as they are moving, that I could not bring myself to post the clip.

This footage is from an unnamed location over the weekend. A bloodied protesters cries, "Peaceful, peaceful". A moment later, gunshots ring out.

Syria 1st-Hand: "There is No Humanity Here Anymore" (Perry)

Checkpoint in Damascus, 24 April 2011I've been playing it through over and over again in my head for the past 16 hours and I still do not know where the gunfire was coming from. It seemed to be coming from a field that lay off to my right --- on the Izraa side of the bridge. I could see some mussel flashes, but I've never in my life seen people walking, and just shot at indiscriminately.

I could not take my eyes off what was quickly becoming carnage. One of the last things I remember seeing clearly were people lying flat on the road, taking cover behind those who had already been wounded or shot dead ... lying in what must have been pools of blood to avoid a hail of flying hot hell.

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Syria, Yemen, Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Waiting for Confirmation

2300 GMT: Apologies for the suspension in service --- EA staff have been on a holiday break this evening with family and friends. We will be back from 0530 GMT with all the latest news.

1700 GMT: AFP summarises today's protests for reform in Morocco....

Nearly 10,000 people, according to an an AFP correspondent, massed in the city centre and marched to Mohammed VI Square. Organisers put the turnout at nearly 20,000. More than 500 people took to the streets in Marrakesh, while more than 2,000 marched in Tangiers to demand the resignation of the mayor, Fouad El Omary.

Key demands of the marchers included curbs on the powers of the king, an independent judiciary, and steps against corruption.

A video of the rally in Casablanca:

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The Latest from Iran (24 April): Noticing Syria

2300 GMT: Apologies for the suspension in service --- EA staff have been on a holiday break this evening with family and friends. We will be back from 0530 GMT with all the latest news.

1500 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Alireza Rajai of the Freedom Movement of Iran has been arrested for "security offences".

1150 GMT: Fashion Wars. Tehran Friday Prayer leader Ahmad Khatami has explained, ""Cultural education and work are not enough to eradicate bad Hijab --- blood must be spilled."

1130 GMT: A Proper Facebook. Tebyan.net, affiliated to the Islamic Propagation Organization of the regime, has announced that it will launch a "social networking" site.

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Iran Video Special: Claimed Footage of Ahwaz Protests

Five clips claiming to be of protests in Ahwaz last Sunday night --- this footage, the first we have seen of the reported clashes in southwestern Iran, were uploaded by an Ahwazi activist group in Denmark:

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Sudan Video Special: The Protest Music of "Fight the Cause"

"IngiLaab (Revolution)" by Mao

As Sudanese youth tried to protest earlier this year, musicians and poets released a 14-track CD, Fight the Cause, to highlight a 21-year battle for reform and a renewal on 30 January 2011, "inspired by the Egyptian and Tunisian youth".

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Obama Special: How the Administration Abandoned Its Promise to Close Guantanamo (Finn and Kornblut)

The one theme that repeatedly emerged in interviews was a belief that the White House never pressed hard enough on what was supposed to be a signature goal. Although the closure of Guantanamo Bay was announced in an executive order, which Obama signed on Jan. 22, 2009, the fanfare never translated into the kind of political push necessary to sustain the policy.

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