Syria, Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Occupation Extended

1745 GMT: Syrian authorities have blocked a United Nations humanitarian team from visiting the southern town of Deraa where hundreds are said to have been killed in the regime crackdown.

In Homs, occupied by the military over the weekend, snipers have reportedly been posted on the rooftops of public and private buildings.

1645 GMT: Pictures of women protesting in front of Egypt State TV headquarters in Cairo, Egypt --- the demonstration follows Saturday's attacks on churches in Imbaba in the capital:

1643 GMT: Matt Robinson offers a fascinating overview of the debate within the Kurdish population in Syria. While some see the recent unrest as the best chance in decades for a Kurdish vote, and full-fledged citizenship. Others, however, are still weary of their position in Syrian society. A 24-year old poet, Azad, sums up youth's sentiment that the Arab Spring could offer hope to the Kurds: 

"'We began a new era and we will not be divided from our Arab brothers,' said Azad. 'We will increase our demonstrations until not only the Kurds, but all Syrians, have their freedom. We are all Syrians in the end.'" 

1612 GMT: A potentially significant piece of news about the legitimacy of the rebel government in Libya - Delegates from 25 local councils have met for the first time. The delegates called for the international recognition of the National Transitional Council (NTC), the fledgling rebel government in Libya.

The announcement is not only for domestic legitimacy but to answer claims outside Libya that the opposition does not represent a majority of the Libyan population, that a post-Gaddafi Libya would decay into a civil war, or that terrorists (namely Al Qaeda) were taking advantage of the unrest to take a foothold in the country.

1540 GMT: Another sad scene - This video, uploaded today, was reportedly taken in Yemen. A man can be seen standing next to a wall. The video editor draws attention to him by drawing a circle around him. After several moments of what sounds like gunfire, the man falls to the ground after being shot in the head. It is too graphic to post here.

We have no way of verifying when, or where, the video was taken, but the blood is real.

1528 GMT: According to the UN, a ship carrying about 600 refugees out of Libya has sunk, apparently after smashing into rocks. Another 400 were rescued by the UN. 

1525 GMT: The funerals of four soldiers, killed over the weekend in Homs, have been televised by Syrian State TV. According to the Syrian government, and media, the soldiers were killed by "armed terrorist groups." 

1426 GMT: There are reports that so many people have been arrested in Syria that the security forces are using soccer stadiums and schools as makeshift prisons in Daraa and Baniyas. There was gunfire in the Damascus suburb of Modemiyah today, as security forces made arrests in house-to-house raids there.

CNN has this eyewitness report:

"Residents of Marquab formed a human chain to thwart the military, but soldiers raided homes and opened fire, said witnesses who were not identified for security reasons." 

1416 GMT: James Miller, reporting for duty...

The death toll in Yemen today has risen to 3, with 80 protesters wounded in today's unrest. While multiple cities are reporting unrest, most of today's activity is focused on the southern city of Taiz, where armored vehicles rolled into the street. One of the people killed today was a shopkeeper, not a protester, who was killed by a stray bullet.

1406 GMT: More footage of the crackdown against protesters in Yemen. Large amounts of security forces can be seen using water cannons, and and either tear gas and/or live ammunition. 

1120 GMT: Footage of a large demonstration in Yemen today:

1045 GMT: More trouble in Taiz in Yemen today, as security forces have opened fire on protesters outside a government building, reportedly killing one man and wounding at least 10 people. Five of the injured have bullet wounds; one is in serious condition.

The latest incidents follows Sunday clashes in which two protesters were killed when security forces tried to disperse a sit-in by thousands of teachers.

Despite the deaths, protesters remained, as the teachers were joined by hundreds of other people who set up tents.

Video of troops deployed in Taiz today:

0915 GMT: Yet more footage of Sunday's clashes in Taiz in Yemen:

0745 GMT: Tunisia's interim Prime Minister, Beji Caid Sebsi, has raised the possibility of delaying July elections for an Assembly that will draft a new Constitution.

Sebsi suggested in a state television interview on Sunday that the ballot could happen later than 24 July 24, although he stressed that authorities would still try to hold the vote on that date: "If the reform committee says there would be technical difficulties that would be another probability to look at."

The statement follows clashes at the weekend, after protesters denounced a statement by the former Minister of Interior warning of a coup if Islamists won the July vote.

0725 GMT: Video of a night-time protest in Hama:

0630 GMT: Video of the clashes during protests in Taiz in Yemen on Sunday, with security forces opening fire:

0620 GMT: Video of Yemeni security forces using water cannon on a demonstration in Taiz on Sunday --- two people were reportedly killed and 50 wounded in clashes (see 0515 GMT):

0550 GMT: Claimed footage of demonstration in Hama in Syria last night:

0545 GMT: Witnesses and medical staff claim security personnel in the Yemeni city of Taiz opened fire on a demonstration Sunday by thousands of teachers, killing two. At least 50 people were injured, three critically. Eleven were wounded by gunfire.

0515 GMT: Two people have reportedly been killed after Syria security forces opened fire on a Sunday night rally in the eastern city of Deir al-Zour. A video of the rally before it was broken up:

0500 GMT: And so a new phase in the conflict in Syria, as the military moved its occupation from Daraa in the south to the nearby town of Tafas, the coastal city of Baniyas, and Homs, the country's third-largest city with more than one million people. 

Activists indicate at least a dozen residents died in Homs on Friday, and there were reports yesterday that a 12-year-old was killed as the military moved in early on Sunday morning.

State TV continues to rationalise the military action with its own claims of violence, reporting that an armed gang shot dead 10 workers on their way back from Lebanon in an ambush near Homs.

Claimed video of a demonstration in Baniyas at the funeral of a protester: "We sacrifice our blood and soul for martyrs / We sacrifice our blood and soul for Baniyas / There is no God but Allah, and martyrs are blessed by Allah / God is great, God is great".