EA WorldView

1842 GMT: Israel Fires Artillery into Syria. According to Al Jazeera English, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) exchanged fire with a target in Syria:

"No soldiers were injured and no damage was caused," the statement said.

"IDF soldiers responded with artillery fire towards the source of the shooting."

The statement said "a direct hit was identified" and that the army had informed UN authorities about the incident.

Israel's Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon said after a previous incident of a Syrian mortal shell and small-arms fire on the Golan that his nation would respond to any attacks on its territory.

1615 GMT: Qamishli Under Attack. Months ago it appeared that a rebel coalition that included a strong representation of Jabhat al Nusra fighters was set to take Qamishli, a largely-Kurdish city in the northeastern corner of Syria (map). Qamishli city has had a strong presence of anti-Assad protests, but Assad still has outposts in the city, particularly in the south. Also, the Kurdish leadership, both the members of the PYD and others, have reached an agreement with the rebels to govern the city themselves. It's unclear if that agreement has broken down, or whether Kurdish groups have joined this attack. However, heavy clashes are reported near the airport to the south (map) which is reportedly being shelled by rebel fighters. The video below reportedly shows smoke rising over the city as a result of the fighting.

A Kurdish journalist with family in the city has suggested that the regime may have broke the ceasefire.

RT @barzaniso: Syrian regime bombed Tel-Hamis town east-north Qamishli, FSA answered bombardement with bombing City center of Qamishli
— naila bozo (@nailabozo) April 12, 2013

However, it's unclear whether that initial bombing was the result of a rebel attack. An opposition Youtube channel has posted video of a rebel convoy preparing to attack Qamishli:

1538 GMT: Heavy Bombardment of Jobar. Jobar, in eastern Damascus (map), is the front line for the rebel advance into the capital. In recent days it has also been the front line for the regime's wrath. Not only are regime artillery and airstrikes focused on hitting rebels engaged in battle, but the regime has consistently targeted streets that were well behind the fighting, punishing the residents of the city who are stuck there for the advances of the anti-Assad fighters.

Today, several videos show smoke rising from Jobar to Qaboun. At least 8 people were killed in a single area, according to the CFDPC, a netwrok of activists who report on Damascus and its suburbs. Two rounds of shelling in the same area were spaced out enough that at least 4 of the first responders, the paramedics and those who were trying to rescue the wounded and trapped, were killed in the second blast:

An appalling massacre was committed by regime forces in the neighborhood where they bombed the area of "Bayader Jadiyeh" with several shells, which led to the fall of 4 martyrs and several wounded and at the advent of paramedics to rescue the wounded, regime forces targeted the same place with mortars which led to the fall of another 4 martyrs of paramedics, bringing the number of martyrs to at least 8 martyrs and several wounded.

1513 GMT: Russia Open to Prosecuting the Regime. Yesterday, we publish a Human Rights Watch report, and EA's interview with its authors, that had a very clear conclusion - Assad's airstrikes target civilians, and this is a war crime.

Today, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov suggested that Russia would --- eventually --- support investigations, and possibly prosecutions, of war crimes.

Without any doubt, this aspect must be taken into account in this complex process, in the search for a final settlement for the future of national reconciliation in Syria. But at this stage, I think the first priority is to end the violence as fast as possible to avoid more civilian deaths.

And these calls for not allowing impunity are totally correct, but what I notice is that certain people try to use that to slow down discussions and have the reconciliation process canceled, which will only lead to more deaths.

The key word here is "eventually." Over the last several months, Russia has been increasingly cognizant that it's losing its advantage on the Syrian issue. International efforts are coming together to topple the regime, some analysts have suggested that military intervention is now a possibility, and the Russian and Iranian support for the regime has not been enough to end the conflict. Even the Russians think Assad is losing. This statement suggests that they are willing to put more on the table if it brings the opposition to the negotiating table.

But it is the regime, not the opposition, that has been unwilling to negotiate. Does this statement provide incentive for the regime to come to the table?

James Miller takes over today's live coverage. Thanks to Scott Lucas and Joanna Paraszczuk for covering this morning.

1255 GMT: . An anti-regime demonstration in the Salaheddin neighbourhood of.Aleppo:

The Damascus suburb of Arbeen:

1135 GMT: Attack in the North. Activists claim insurgents have been attacked near the largely-Kurdish town of Qamishli, near the border with Turkey.

The opposition has reported shelled the airport, and other video showed smoke rising over the town.

The activists said the Free Syrian Army was shelling a regime artillery regiment in the southern edge of the town.

Between August and September 2012, Kurdish insurgents captured most Kurdish-populated areas in Syria’s north, but Qamishli remained nominally under regime control.

1025 GMT: Shelling. Claimed footage of regime airstrike on the Damascus suburb of Sbeneh:

0855 GMT: US Aid. Confirming leaks from officials earlier this week, US President Barack Obama authorized the release Thursday of up to $10 million in food and medicine for insurgents.

In a press appearance with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in the White House, Obama said:

Secretary-General Ban and I shared the view that we are at a critical juncture, that it is important for us to bring about an effective political transition that would respect the rights of all Syrians and that, in the interim, it’s important for us to try to eliminate some of the carnage that has been taking place directed at civilians and non-combatants.

0525 GMT: Casualties. The Local Coordination Committees claim 149 people were killed on Thursday, including 41 in Homs Province, 36 in Aleppo Province, and 33 in Damascus and its suburbs.

The Violations Documentation Center reports 56,324 people killed since the beginning of the conflict in March 2011, an increase of 148 on Wednesday. Of the dead, 44,754 are civilians, a rise of 66 from yesterday.

0510 GMT: International Powers and the Insurgency. The Wednesday-Thurday meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the G8 --- eight of the world's most countries --- offered the prospect of developments in the Syrian conflict, especially in relation to the insurgency. Leading figures of the oppostion, including Prime Minister-designate Ghassan Hitto, were in London to establish their bona fides, and the Ministers were expected to discuss the possibility of enhanced aid, including "non-lethal" assistance to insurgents.

In the end, however, almost nothing of note came out publicly. The G8 said it was "appalled" by the deaths and "expressed deep concerns about the increasing human tragedy of the conflict in Syria. They urged all countries to boost their contributions to a Unation Nations aid appeal.

There was no mention of assistance to the insurgency.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague, speaking after these nominal declarations, pointed to the lack of international action:

The United Nations Security Council has not fulfilled its responsibilities because it is divided. That division continues. Have we solved that division at this meeting? No. We didn't expect to do so

The world has failed so far in its responsibilities and continues to do so.

US Secretary of State John Kerry met opposition leaders on the sidelines of the talks, but US officials said Kerry made "no promises", for example, on supply of weapons --- let alone the anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems that the insurgency has requested.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle expressed reluctance to take such a step:

To date I have seen no way to prevent these weapons getting into the wrong hands, namely those of radicals.

My concern is that weapons that are delivered to Syria will then get into the hands of jihadists and terrorists which then could be deployed against moderate democratic forces, and I fear that some jihadist or Islamist terrorists see Damascus as a stopover to Jerusalem at best.