Syria, Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Towards a Civil State?

Claimed footage of a mass funeral procession for Ezzat al-Baidee, the teenager whose death in the Damascus suburb of Douma on Monday was captured on video

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2040 GMT: A series of videos from around Homs in Syria tonight --- the Waar district:

Inshaat:

Ghouta:

2010 GMT: The husband of Rafa Nached has confirmed reports that Syrian security forces have detained the prominent psychoanalyst as she was preparing to board a flight to Paris from Damascus on Saturday.

Faisal Mohammed Abdullah, professor of ancient history at Damascus University, said his wife was arrested by officers in Syria's air force intelligence service. She was going to France "for family and health reasons".

Nached is the first female psychoanalyst to practise in Syria. She recently founded the Damascus School of Psychoanalysis, in collaboration with French colleagues.

2005 GMT: As protesters criticise Russia for hosting a visit by Syrian President Assad's media advisor Bouthaina Shaaban (see 1415 GMT), a demonstration in the Kisweh section of Damascus with sign: "Stalin couldn't kill free Russian spirit, Assad also will not be able to kill free Syrian spirit":

2000 GMT: Claimed footage of four soldiers announcing their defection from the Syrian military:

1950 GMT: Claimed video of a protest in Hasaka in eastern Syria tonight:

1945 GMT: Back from a break to find that the US Ambassador, Robert Ford, and French Ambassador, Eric Chevallier, as well as their Danish and Japanese counterparts, have attended the condolence ceremony for Ghiyath Mattar, the Syrian human rights activist who allegedly died from torture when he was detained last week (see 0520 GMT).

Activists report that security forces attacked mourners with tear gas and fired live bullets in the air as soon as the ambassadors left the Damascus suburb of Darraya.

1705 GMT: A team from the United Nations Human Rights Commission has posted its report on a visit to Yemen from 28 June to 6 July. The key findings:

The Mission noted that the Yemeni Government had lost effective control of parts of the country and within the major cities, where armed opponents appeared to have de-facto control. The Mission also observed that among those seeking to achieve or retain power some have deliberately sought to collectively punish and cause severe hardship to the civilian population by cutting off vital access to basic services such as electricity, fuel and water. The Mission notes the danger that the protests might become increasingly radicalized and more violent in response to the excessive use of lethal force by the government, and the growing involvement of, and intimidation by, armed elements within the demonstrations. In essence violence has led to more violence and it is a tribute to the street protesters that they have sought to maintain their peaceful character despite the heavy price in loss of life and in severe injuries that has been paid thus far.

On the other hand, the Mission is alarmed by the deteriorating humanitarian situation, which is negatively affecting most Yemenis, but in particular the poorest and most vulnerable, such as children, IDPs [internally-displaced persons], and refugees. Isolated acts of sabotage cannot account for all the suffering witnessed by or reported to the Mission throughout the country and the availability of electricity, fuel, cooking gas, water and other basic services should not be misused to punish the entire population. The Mission is of the view that calls for investigations and prosecutions will be undermined unless urgent measures are undertaken to ensure the independence and integrity of the judiciary and to provide them with sufficient resources. Additionally, given the lack of confidence by many Yemenis in the judiciary to conduct impartial investigations into human rights abuses there is a need for international, independent and impartial investigations to take place.

1505 GMT: Women and children in protest in Bayada in Homs Province in Syria:

1435 GMT: Claimed footage of Syrian military in the town of Khan Shiekhoun in the northwest:

1425 GMT: United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has said hundreds of people have been killed and thousands injured in six months of unrest in Yemen, many due to the excessive use of force by security forces in an "increasingly violent power struggle". She called on the Yemeni government to end attacks and the use of live ammunition against civilians and to release immediately all prisoners held for protesting peacefully.

1415 GMT: Welcomed by Russian officials on Monday, Syrian President Assad's media advisor Bouthaina Shaaban declared that the regime is making progress in reforms while claiming, "What happens in Syria cannot be separated from what is happening in the region."

Shaaban said the complex crisis in Syria was occurring amidst a media war: "We are on the threshold of the centennial anniversary of Sykes-Picot colonial treaty and Balfour Declaration. We notice that old colonial countries are seeking to practice their habitual policies and dividing what is has already been divided.

Syrian protesters have responded today with denunciations of Moscow --- in Idlib in the northwest, demonstrators burn a Russian flag:

1410 GMT: Saadi Qaddafi, the son of the former Libyan leader, has told CNN's Nick Robertson, that he came to Niger on "a humanitarian mission".

Qaddafi was in a convoy of Libyans who fled south to Niger last weekend. Niger authorities say he has not been detaineed but is being kept under surveillance (see 0500 GMT).

1230 GMT: Back from an extended academic break to find footage from Mourek in Hama Province of the funeral of Mohammad Mustafa Sulaiman, shot dead by security forces on Monday:

0630 GMT: Officials say the bodies of at least 22 Shia pilgrims who were shot and killed have been found in a remote desert area in western Iraq.

The bodies were discovered late Monday night, hours after four gunmen dressed in military uniforms stopped the bus at a fake security checkpoint and told all the women to get off, according to a security official. An Iraqi army patrol found the deserted women, weeping and wailing, by the side of the highway and brought them to the provincial capital of Ramadi.

The gunmen drove the bus a few kilometres off the main highway between Baghdad and the Jordanian border in Anbar Province. The 22 bodies were found there, about 300 kilometres (185 miles) west of Baghdad.

0625 GMT: Protesters in Khalidiya in Homs criticise the head of the Arab League for meeting President Assad and declaring agreement that the regime crackdown will be eased --- "Nabil al-Arabi is a traitor":

0525 GMT: The New York Times summarises Monday's reported offer by Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, granting his deputy the authority to negotiate and sign a deal to transfer power, with some scepticism: "A move that appeared to offer a nod to the government’s formal opposition without actually meeting its demands".

0520 GMT: CNN profiles Ghiyath Mattar, the Syrian human rights activist allegedly killed after torture in detention.

One of Mattar's friends summarises, "[He was] a symbol of what the Syrian revolution should be --- peaceful and nonviolent. His death is an attack by the regime on peace. His attack is saying, 'We want to destroy the messengers of peace in Syria and the ideals and values they hold.'"

Matter, a key organiser of protests, was on the run for three months before he was seized last week in the Damascus suburb of Darraya. On Friday, Mattar's family received a call asking them to pick up his body from security forces.

The people of Daraya attempted to gather for Mattar's funeral Saturday, but security forces fired on the crowd and used tear gas to disperse it, said one of the activist's colleagues. One man was shot and later died. Security forces surrounded Mattar's home and his family, so only 100 to 200 people could attend the burial.

The colleague noted, "He always said, 'The revolution must remain peaceful, because this is not just about changing Syria, it is about building Syria. And how can we build a Syria destroyed by war?'"

0500 GMT: Al Jazeera English reports on the head of Libya's National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul Jalil, speaking to an enthusiastic crowd in Martyrs Square in Tripoli. Saying that Libya would be governed by Sharia law, he urged all to strive for a civil, democratic state: "We must be united and not divided. We must condemn hatred and envy." And he called on insurgent forces to refrain from vengeance and violence against civilians.

On Tuesday, Amnesty International released a 122-page report while, while claiming crimes of humanity by the regime of former Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, also said the NTC was guilty of human rights violations:

The NTC is facing a difficult task of reigning in opposition fighters and vigilante groups responsible for serious human rights abuses, including possible war crimes; but has shown unwillingness to hold them accountable.... Opposition officials with whom Amnesty International raised these concerns condemned such abuses, though they have often downplayed their extent and gravity....

Opposition fighters and supporters have abducted, arbitrarily detained, tortured and killed former members of the security forces, suspected Gaddafi loyalists, captured soldiers and foreign nationals wrongly suspected of being mercenaries fighting on behalf of Gaddafi's forces.

Niger said on Monday it is watching the movements of the son of Muammar Gaddafi, Saadi, who entered the country last weekend, and has not detained him. "Nothing has changed in the government's position. There is no international search for him. Like the others [who have fled from Libya] he is just under surveillance."