Bahrain, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Flashback on a Funeral and an Attack

1937 GMT: A leading syrian dissident, Walid al-Bunni, was released on bail today after being arrested in August, according to the AFP:

"The Damascus court of appeals on Wednesday freed opposition figure Walid al-Bunni in exchange for a bail of 1,150 Syrian pounds ($23). He will be tried later for inciting (anti-regime) demonstrations and sectarianism," said Michel Shammas.

1823 GMT: The newest phase of military action in Syria has been in high gear for the second day in a row:

The Local Co-ordination Committees, which report on protests in Syria says security force surrounded the Deir Baaloba neighbourhood in Homs today and opened fire with heavy weapons. The activist network also says hundreds of students have been demonstrating in the al-Ashrafeya neighbourhood of Lattakia against the arrest of a school principal, who was arrested by the security forces after he resigned in protest at the storming of the school and assault on the students within it. The LCC also says a number of people have been arrested in Aleppo.

1809 GMT: An Egyptian general has defended the actions of the military during Sunday's clashes with Coptic Christians:

"The armed forces would never and have never opened fire on the people," Gen Mahmoud Hegazy, a member of the ruling military council, said during a news conference on Wednesday.

Pointing at footage of an army vehicle from the scene of the clashes, he stressed that "there has not been a case of rolling over people with vehicles".

"They are trying to avoid running into protesters, not rolling over them."

The general also said the video proved that soldiers had come under attack by demonstrators armed with guns, knives and rocks.

The protesters tell a very different story, that the Egyptian military's brutality killed at least 25 people:

On Wednesday, Amnesty International declared that the army must answer for Sunday's "bloodbath" and said the top brass should stop trying to evade responsibility by blaming shadowy "foreign conspiracies" for the unrest.

"One can only wonder what orders were given that could have led to military vehicles running down protesters on the streets," argued the human rights organisation. "If the military police and other security forces were not acting under orders, it raises questions about their ability to police demonstrations in the first place."

Protesters quickly created this video gallery and this list of testimonials in an attempt to document what happened on Sunday.

1534 GMT: According to the BBC, there are only two small areas of Sirte that are still under Qaddafi control, 80% of the city is controlled by the National Transitional Council, and Qaddafi's forces are being heavily bombarded by rocket and shell attacks from NTC fighters. Below is a map that shows where the fighting is still taking place, according to the military commanders and embedded journalists:

1528 GMT: When I awoke, I saw a report that Syrian State TV, SANA, was claiming that "millions" attended a pro-Assad rally in Damascus. Now, according to the AP, it seems that only "tens of thousands" showed up to voice support for the embattled Syrian President Bashar al Assad.

1522 GMT: The Egyptian military has new allegations about what really happened on Sunday, when severe clashes with Coptic Christians left large numbers dead:

According to the Associated Press, an Egyptian military official says army troops were attacked by protesters armed with swords, firebombs and rocks during a rally by Christians earlier this week in the worst violence since Hosni Mubarak was ousted.

General Adel Emara denies the troops opened fire with live ammunition on the protesters or intentionally crushed them with armored vehicles. He has made the comments in a press conference Wednesday in a lengthy explanation of the violence, in which 26 people were killed, mostly Christians.

1459 GMT: This would have been huge news on any other day. A Syrian national, Mohamad Soueid, has been arrested in Virginia for spying on protesters and activists who have been demonstrating against the Syrian government inside the US:

According to the indictment, Soueid sent 20 recordings between April and June to Syrian's intelligence agency. They depict protests in this country against the Syrian regime, which has cracked down ruthlessly on anti-government protesters there. The indictment also states that he traveled to Syria in June to meet with Assad personally. Soueid, 47, also tried to recruit others to monitor anti-Assad rallies and protests in the U.S., according to the indictment.

Soueid is also charged with making false statements about his activities for the Mukhabarat, Syria's intelligence agency, when interviewed in August by the FBI.

1454 GMT: James Miller takes the liveblog. It's been a busy morning, but we'll try to get the readers caught up.

The National Transitional Council, the interim government in Libya, has sent a strong condemnation to Qatar, accusing the Arab State of supplying militias inside Libya with arms without the approval of the NTC:

"It's time we publicly declare that anyone who wants to come to our house has to knock on our front door first," Ali Tarhouni, Libya's oil and finance minister and the deputy chief of the NTC's executive committee, told a news conference. "I hope this message will be received by all our friends, both our Arab brothers and Western powers."

0745 GMT: A late start today, as we have been working on the developing story over the alleged Iran-backed plot to kill the Saudi Ambassador to the US....

We reported on Monday about the funeral of Ahmed Jabber Al Qattan, the 16-year-old killed by Bahraini security forces. An EA correspondent has now put together some of the claimed footage of security forces dispersing the funeral procession.

The start of the firing:

Chaos during the firing:

Women try to confront the security forces: