Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Will Arab League Observers Make a Difference?

Protesters in front of the headquarters of the ruling Ba'ath Party in the Syrian capital Damascus last night

See also Syria Special: Who is Observing What, and What Will Happen When They Finish?
Tuesday's Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Pounding Homs

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2108 GMT: Citizen journalist Khaled Abu Salah confronts the head of the Arab League observers, Mohamed Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi:

Another video of the chaos and gunfire surrounding the observers in Bab Sbaa in Homs:

2100 GMT: A protest tonight in Aldair in Bahrain, called by the 14 February coalition to show loyalty with detainees --- slogans included "People want Freedom" and "Oh mosque demolisher, people are steadfast":

2040 GMT: Opposing forces in the Yemeni capital Sanaa dismantled military positions on Wednesday.

Bulldozers crashed through the walls of sandbags fortifying the fighters' positions on a main street in Hasaba, home to tribal leader Sadeq al-Ahmar and the site of fighting between his forces and those of President Saleh.

However, one person was killed and three were wounded when gunmen loyal to a pro-Saleh security chief opened fire on a group of subordinates who had turned against him.

1900 GMT: Contrasting images from Syria today --- first, tanks in Ariha in Idlib Province:

A protest tonight in Zabadani:

1851 GMT: Dramatic footage of protesters hitting a police car with a Molotov cocktail in Nuwaidrat in Bahrain last night. Activists claim that the Molotov was thrown as defence against the security forces' vehicles when they tried to run over demonstrators.

1837 GMT: According to the Local Coordinating Committees of Syria, the death toll at the hands of the Syrian regime has risen to 14, including, "two (2) children. Five (5) martyrs were in Homs, two (2) martyrs in each of Aleppo, Hama and Damascus Suburbs (Douma and Erbeen) and one (1) martyr in each of Daraa, Idlib and Lattakia."

1825 GMT: German authorities are investigating an attack on a political leader in Berlin, an attack that some believe was executed by the Syrian Secret Service:

The Greens said in a statement that two men claiming to be policemen arrived at Ahma's flat at around 2 am and when he opened the door, began beating him with metal bars and clubs.

The party said the men's Arab appearance as well as the fact that Ahma had been threatened before led it to conclude the attackers were linked to the regime in Damascus.

Beck called on Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle to summon the Syrian ambassador over the attack and on German authorities to assure Ahma's safety.

1815 GMT: Another video shows Arab League observers walking amidst gunfire. This video was reportedly taken in Baba Amr. We'd note that, in the previous videos that the last several videos with gunfire were taken in Bab Sbaa. In other words, gunfire in the presence of Arab League observers does not appear to be an isolated case (see a map of Homs):

1800 GMT: Back from a quick lunch break.

EA's attention has, obviously, been focused on Homs, and the Arab League observers, but the story in Syria is larger than that. By the latest count, the LCCS says that 11 have died nationwide, "including 2 children, 5 martyrs in Homs; two martyrs in each of Aleppo and Hama; and a martyr [a 3 year olf child] in Idlib."

This video reportedly shows protesters fleeing gunfire in al Sanamine, Daraa:

Beyond that, a better video than the one we posted earlier reportedly shows protests on the campus of Aleppo University. This matches eyewitness reports that EA has also received.

There are reports that, in many locations, protests have lasted well into the night. Below, we've posted a remarkable video, reportedly showing a candlelit protest in Qamishli, in the northeast. Protests have reportedly lasted all day in the largely Kurdish city on the border with Turkey:

1710 GMT: Another video, apparently taken after the last one we posted, showing gunfire near the Arab League observers in Bab Sbaa, Homs:

We'd note that there is no sign of a gun in the crowd, though this man has an interestingly shaped flag poll:

Update: For the record, an activist who had spoken to people in Homs clarifies that what looks like a gun in the original video was actually just the flag rolled around part of the flag pole. This could explain why we were unable to see a gun looking at this video that was apparently taken only seconds later, but from a different angle.

It's a small point, but worth noting.

A very helpful activist, ArabLeagueFF, shares this picture, a FAL rifle famous for it's long barrel, which could match the picture in the last video.

We don't want to dwell on this point too much, though it's important that we do our best to fully analyze the evidence. At the end of the day, the most significant point is that regardless of the presence of international observers, and regardless of the fact that they are wearing orange vests, violence has continued in the presence of the Arab League mission.

1653 GMT: This video is significant. According to activists, it shows Arab League observers trying to cross the street in Bab Sbaa, Homs, as gunfire rings out:

This video has an obvious significance. If the observers are actually being shot at, then one can only imagine what they will report.

There is another interesting piece of evidence in the video, however. About 48 seconds in, a man can be seen waving an opposition flag. However, this man also appears to be carrying a weapon, hidden by the flag. It is rare that we see such images, and it is not known whether or not he is a member of the Free Syrian Army, that has had an armed presence in the city in an attempt to protect civilians.

1640 GMT: After discussing these videos with an activist, we've come to the same conclusion. All three videos of the deceased child are of the same child, Ahmed Muhammad Ra'i, a five year old who was killed while observers were in the city of Homs (though they did not actually witness the killing).

1625 GMT: A note on that last update - some activists are actually claiming that the child was killed in the presence of the Arab League observers, though this is unconfirmed.

1613 GMT: Another video of Arab League observers. This time, they are standing next to an armored personnel carrier (APC) and a sandbag checkpoint.

Once the observers were witnessed in the area, people came out to greet them, bringing with them the body of a child who was reportedly killed by soldiers from the checkpoint. About 45 seconds into the video, distant gunfire can be heard (the rumble before this sounds, to EA, like wind):

The Arab League observers perhaps did not count on this. Regardless of whether or not they had intentions of accurately documenting the reality on the streets of Syria, the activists surrounding the observers, the same activists who have been documenting the conflict every day since March, are now busy documenting the human rights observers.

As the activist who shared these videos with us said, "They cannot deny this."

And there is another interesting consequence of all of this. Typically, EA writers are used to waiting hours, or sometimes days, for videos to be uploaded onto Youtube. Internet is often disrupted in places like Homs, or Daraa. However, because of the observers, the internet and cell networks are working at full speed.

1546 GMT: Protesters place the body of a dead child on the hood of a car belonging to the Arab League observers. This was reportedly taken today in Baba Amr, Homs:

1539 GMT: A second important video - the Arab League observers witnessing gunfire (and what sounds like an explosion) in Baba Amr, Homs:

1532 GMT: The Guardian is reporting that some observers have reached Baba Amr, which would explain our last video:

Reuters is now saying that, despite an earlier contretemps between monitors and locals concerning the presence of an army officer, a small group of monitors have in fact returned to the neighbourhood.

Activists said a smaller group of monitors returned without the officer and were escorted by residents and activists on a tour of the turbulent district.

But the tour was not straightforward, the report adds.

The monitors could not enter an area where residents said they believed detainees were being hidden because gunfire erupted. It was not clear where the shooting came from.

"Residents were accompanying the team to the area to show them where they believe detainees are being held when suddenly there was gunfire near the checkpoint," said Rami Abdelrahman, of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

1526 GMT: IMPORTANT video. While we don't know what the Arab League observers will say that they saw, thanks to activists taking videos like these, we know what they actually saw. This video reportedly shows observers seeing the body of a child killed in Baba Amr, Homs. The child does not appear to have been dead for long:

1516 GMT: The LCCS shares a second video of the shooting in Anadan, Aleppo. The images of the crowd, in both videos, clearly show that they are unarmed and peaceful, but the crowd, standing in the open, is apparently ambushed by shooters:

1508 GMT: However, not everywhere is so jubilant as Dael. This video, taken in Anadan, Aleppo, starts of peaceful, and upbeat, but ends in gunfire and shouts of "Allahu Akbar."

In the city of Aleppo, there are more reports of student demonstrations. This video was reportedly taken outside Aleppo University today:

1451 GMT: While some are disheartened by what we've seen from the Arab League observers, the Syrian people are taking to the streets in order to spread their message, gain the attention of the observers, and perhaps benefit from a degree of protection while the observers are present.

This video was, according to the signs, taken today in the al Kadam (al Qadam) district of Damascus:

And this video was reportedly taken in the northern city of Qamishli, a largely Kurdish town on the border with Turkey:

The city of Dael, Daraa, has paid a steep price, and has often found itself squarely in the sights of the Syrian regime's crackdown. Still, a large and enthusiastically defiant crowd celebrates and protests today:

1443 GMT: Three videos, and multiple eyewitness reports, tell of a second day of intense clashes in Hama, near Assi Square:

1434 GMT: James Miller takes the liveblog from Scott Lucas.

The LCCS has a significant claim, one that, if evidence can later be produced, will surely catch international attention:

Homs: Security forces fired on a children's bus near the university campus, which led to a number of wounded. Red Crescent vehicles were prevented from entering the area to treat the wounded because of security forces' random gunfire along the road to the campus.

1330 GMT: Latest developments and videos from Syria....

Residents in the besieged Bab Amro section of Homs have refused to meet Arab League observers in the presence of a Syrian army officer.

A local activist reported, "The monitors left the Baba Amr neighbourhood because they refused to enter the neighbourhood without being escorted by Lieutenant Colonel Mudeen Neda from the Fourth Division. The families of the martyrs and the wounded refused to meet them in his presence, and the monitors left."

Live footage on al Jazeera has shown gunfire and black smoke rising above Hama on Wednesday as dozens of men marched through the streets chanting "Where are the Arab monitors?".

Claimed footage of gunfire in the Baroudiyeh district:

Activists say at least four regime troops were killed and 12 others wounded in southern Syria in an ambush by military defectors.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the ambush targeted a joint military and security convoy on the road between the villages of Khirbet Ghazaleh and Dael in Daraa province.

A demonstration in Amuda in the northeast awaits the arrival of Arab League observers:

A mass demonstration in front of the Palace of Justice in Idlib in the northwest:

1240 GMT: In Yemen, hundreds of employees demonstrated Wednesday in front of an economics institute linked to the Ministry of Defense, demanding the dismissal of its manager, Hafez Mayad, who is from the tribe of President Saleh and is seen by many as a corrupt figure in the regime.

About 150 police officers also held a protest outside headquarters in the capital Sana'a, demanding the removal of the security chief.

1210 GMT: A women's demonstration in Binnish in northwest Syria today:

1200 GMT: Syrian State media is reporting that authorities have released 755 detainees "whose hands were not stained with Syrian blood".

0940 GMT: Sudanese General Mohamed Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi, the head of the Arab League observers in Syria said today that the situation in Homs was "reassuring so far": "There were some places where the situation was not good. But there wasn't anything frightening at least while we were there."

Al-Dabi continued, "Yesterday was quiet and there were no clashes. We did not see tanks but we did see some armored vehicles. But remember this was only the first day and it will need investigation. We have 20 people who will be there for a long time."

0920 GMT: Maryam Abu Dheeb is the daughter of the President of the Bahrain Teachers Association, Mahdi Abu Dheeb. She describes the detention and abuse of her father and the attacks on her family's home:

0825 GMT: Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak returns to centre stage today with the resumption of his trial in Cairo.

Mubarak has reportedly arrived at the court by ambulance from a military hospital, where his lawyer says he is being treated fro stomach cancer. His two sons, Alaa and Gamal, former Minister of Interior Habib El Adly, and six security officials are also being tried.

The murder and corruption trial of Mubarak, 83, was adjourned in September.

0655 GMT: A series of powerful images from Syria on Tuesday --- residents of the shelled neighbourhood of Bab Amro, which has lost dozens of its people to the violence, pleading with Arab League observers to visit their section of Homs; tens of thousands putting out their message in a rally in the Khalidiya district before trying and failing to reach the symbolic centre of Clock Square; the observers walking down a shattered street with a regime tanks only a few hundred yards ahead of them.

None of them offered any clarity, however. The observers will return to Homs today, amidst reports that the regime tried to clean up appearances by moving out military units and transferring hundreds of detainees to off-limits military sites. There were reports of security forces firing on protesters in Hama, even though observers were in that city, on a day when "only" 35 people died. We continue to look for developments from the northwest and the south, where insurgents may have been making gains against President Assad's military. And then there were the protests in the capital Damascus --- not on the outskirts, but in the centre, including in front of the headquarters of the Ba'ath Party.