Libya, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Restoring Order to Tripoli

Children in Zabadani, west of Damascus, call for the execution of Syrian President Assad

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1320 GMT: Syrian State news agency SANA reports that President Assad has issued a decree for a new media law that would ban the imprisonment of journalists and give them access to information.

The decree modifies existing legislation under which journalists face jail for crimes such as attacking "the prestige and dignity of the state, national unity and the morale of the army".

Journalists can still face fines of up to $21,000 for defamation.

1200 GMT: Moussa Ibrahim, the spokesman for Muammar Qaddafi, has said that the former Libyan leader is ready to negotiate with the insurgents to form a transitional government, as opposition fighters continue their push toward Sirte, Qaddafi's hometown, east of Tripoli.

Ibrahim called the headquarters of the Associated Press in New York late on Saturday. He said he was calling from Tripoli and Qaddafi was still in Libya. Ibrahim claimed Qaddafi had appointed one of his sons, Saadi, to head the negotiations.

A top official in the National Transition Council, Ali Tarhouni, said the new government will not negotiate with Qaddafi unless he surrenders.

The opposition claimed claimed victory in Bin Jawad, east of Sirte, late on Saturday. The success opens the way for an advance of Qaddafi's remaining stronghold from multiple directions.

1120 GMT: A Libyan man, Mabrouk Abdullah, has told The Associated Press that he survived a massacre by the forces of former Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, who opened fire on about 130 civilian detainees.

An AP correspondent reported today that he saw at least 50 charred bodies at the site near a military camp held by Qadhafi supporters until rebels took Tripoli.

Abdullah, who was at the site, said he and other prisoners were told by a guard they would be released Tuesday. Instead, guards threw hand grenades and opened fire at detainees huddling in a hangar. Abdullah said he was crouching along a wall and was shot in his side. He added that as survivors of the initial attack tried to flee, they again came under fire.

1105 GMT: An overnight demonstration in Tafas in southern Syria:

A clip of Syrian troops keeping watch in the centre of the al-Bayada section of Homs:

1000 GMT: Turkish President Abdullah Gul says his country has "lost faith" in the Syrian regime and any reforms will be "too little, too late":

We are really very sad. Incidents are said to be 'finished' and then another 17 people are dead. How many will it be today?.

Clearly we have reached a point where anything would be too little too late. We have lost our confidence.

Today in the world there is no place for authoritarian administrations, one-party rule, closed regimes. Those either will be replaced by force, or the governors of states will take the initiative to administer.

Everyone should know that we are with the Syrian people...,What is fundamental is the people.

0945 GMT: An online statement by the "Free Officers", a group that says it represents army defectors, claims "large defections" have occurred in Harasta, northeast of Syrian capital Damascus. The group says that security forces and pro-regime "shabiha" (armed men) are "chasing the defectors in the direction of the gardens and districts inside Damascus".

The statement also claims an Air Force colonel, in charge of raids and arrests by the secret police, was hit by a bullet in the head in the nearby suburb of Saqba. Earlier, Associated Press and activists had reports that a man had been shot and killed in the area.

Sources told Al Jazeera of clashes between defected soldiers and Assad supporters, backed by security forces, in the Damscus suburb of Qadam last night. Four to five soldiers were said to have joined protests.

Activists also said there one person was killed when protesters tried to march from Harasta towards the centre of the capital.

0630 GMT: As you may have noticed, updates may be sporadic as Scott Lucas is travelling and James Miller is coping with a hurricane (which, for him, will be an inconvenience, and a damp one at that, but not a real danger). We'll be back to almost full strength on Monday.

In Libya, the three challenges are emerging. 1. Find Colonel Muammar Qaddafi and his sons. 2. Establish law and order, as well as utilities and a sence of normalcy, in Tripoli and other recently captured towns. 3. Either force a victory in Qaddafi's hometown of Sirte, or negotiate a settlement.

The Deputy Prime Minister of Libya’s National Transitional Council, Ali Issawi, speaks with Al Jazeera English

In Syria, perhaps the most important news yesterday was the raid on the Rifai Mosque in Damascus, leading to the deaths of at least one person. Multiple people were also beaten, perhaps including the Imam of the mosque, an 80 year old man. The mosque appears to have suffered severe damage, and there are reports that the Quran was "desecrated" by the security forces: