Syria, Bahrain (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Questions of Human Rights

1953 GMT: Egypt. More political fallout tonight. 4 liberal members of the Constituent Assembly have announced their resignations:

The NAC members who left the assembly are Abdul Jalil Mostafa, the coordinator of the association; Jaber Gad Nasser, a constitutional law professor at Cairo University; and Samir Morqos, a political researcher. Nasser was one of the plaintiffs in the case which resulted in the first Constituent Assembly being disbanded by an administrative court.

The NAC members released a statement saying, “The newly-declared Constituent Assembly is not significantly different from the first formation, which an administrative court ruled invalid because it was based on party representation and not national representation as a whole.”

Meanwhile, the Muslim Brotherhood Twitter account has sent a message that "Parliament is staying," whatever that means. The Guardian is cataloging the responses, which range from the assessment that the statement shows pure delusion to strong defiance.

Click to read more ...

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: So It's Now a "Civil War"

LiveStream of Wednesday's shelling of Homs in Syria

See also Syria Document: UN Report on Regime's Abuses of Children
Iraq Latest: At Least 44 Killed as Bombs Target Pilgrims and Police
Tuesday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: 109 Killed Amid Reports of "Children as Human Shields" and a "Plainclothes Army"

---

2105 GMT: Bahrain. Not only was a 5-year-old boy shot by police tonight, but his father was also injured, according to activists:

The 51 yr old fathers body is filled with pellets, they are in his thigh, stomach and arms #bahrain twitpic.com/9w3syy

— angry arabiya (@angryarabiya) June 13, 2012

Click to read more ...

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: 109 Killed Amid Reports of "Children as Human Shields" and a "Plainclothes Army"

2023 GMT: Syria. The battles near Homs are heating up, and the Free Syrian Army seems to be making significant headway:

FSA back in Baba Amro, Homs - stunning combat footage with tank destroyed youtube.com/watch?v=nZI7xS… youtube.com/watch?v=JdTVoB… #Syria

— edward dark (@edwardedark) June 12, 2012

2003 GMT: Tunisia. The Ministries of Interior and Defense have declared a night-time curfew in the capital Tunis and seven other suburbs and cities following clashes with Salafi Islamists and other protesters angered by an art exhibition they say insults Muslims (see 1234 GMT).

The curfew begins at 9 p.m. and ends at 5 a.m. and will be enforced throughout the capital, the suburbs of Ben Arouss, Ariana, and Manouba, and the cities of Sousse, Monastir, Jendouba and Ben Guerdane.

Click to read more ...

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: A Regime on Its Last Legs?

2016 GMT: Syria. The discussion continues (see last 2 updates) - Hama Echo offers another blog post that has analyzed videos coming from this artillery site. However, according to the analysis, the second video we've posted is older than the 1st one that claims to have been taken today.

The blog post also analyses what weapons appear to be used, and where those weapons appear to be located. The post focuses on comparing the videos of this camp to the ordinance that has reportedly been used against the city of Homs in the past. It's complicated, but a good read.

Our conclusion? The two videos taken together serve as fairly convincing evidence that shabiha are conducting military operations inside the artillery camp, and are being directly trained by the Syrian military. The evidence is compelling, but not indisputable. The blogger Bjørn H Jespersen offers compelling evidence that the videos show an artillery base in El Waer, Homs, with mortars firing in the direction of the populated city.

Click to read more ...

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: The Spread of the Conflict

2202 GMT: Syria. There are widespread reports of violence tonight, in nearly every region of Syria. Despite the fact that the number may rise, the Local Coordinating Committees, a network of activists, report that at least 140 people have been killed, including them ore than 70 reportedly killed in a single village in Hama province:

92 in Hama (35 martyrs from one family, the youngest victim was a 3 month old baby), 15 in Latakia, 11 in Idlib, 12 in Homs, 5 in Deir Ezzor, 2 martyrs in Damascus Suburbs,and 1 in Daraa.

2152 GMT: Syria. The blogger Brown Moses offers a good translation of an opposition Facebook page we cited earlier. This is the most complete detail of the attack on Qubair village that we have seen yet:

Hama Countryside | al-Qubair Farm near Ma'arzaf Village | Details of the Massacre Ma'arzaf village lies about 20 km west of Hama city and 2 km south of the city of Mharde. al-Qubair is considered to be a residential area south of Ma'arzaf with about 25 houses where members of the al-Yateem, al-Farees and 'Alwan families live.

At around 2 p.m., 3 T-72 tanks moved from the direction of al-Majdal village and Aseela village towards Ma'arzaf and began shelling Ma'arzaf and al-Qubair, another small village whose residents are mostly from the al-Yateem family.

Click to read more ...

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: From Houla to Douma

2039 GMT: Syria. In Damascus, there are protests reported in multiple areas, but heavy gunfire reported in far more areas. The reports, from so many sources, are pouring in at this late hour - it will be a long night for Syria's capital.

2032 GMT: Syria. Meanwhile, protests continue, in the heart of Aleppo, and the heart of Damascus:

#Aleppo: protesters in #Khaldiyeh district chanting in solidarity with the suburbs of Aleppo tonight 5-6-2012youtube.com/watch?v=RHTDS8…#Syria

— Zilal (@zilal1) June 5, 2012

Protest in Kafarsouseh neighborhood of #Damascus tonight. Vid: youtube.com/watch?v=sQA8-o… #Syria twitpic.com/9t6acn

— Free Syrian (Sami) (@HamaEcho) June 5, 2012

Click to read more ...

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: President Assad's "Real War"

2027 GMT: Syria. All day there have been reports that multiple towns across Daraa province have been heavily attacked by the Syrian military. Now, those reports continue to come in, despite the late hour. Let's sort the reports.

There are reports that Tafas has been subjected to heavy machine-gun fire coming from various outposts and checkpoints controlled by the Syrian military.

Yesterday, videos reportedly showed large fields of crops that were lit on fire by "shabiha," paramilitary supporters of the Assad regime.

Earlier there were reports of wounded and dead in El Naymah, closer to Daraa city. Earlier videos showed tanks rolling through the town and heavy gunfire ringing out, reportedly from dug-in army positions:

Click to read more ...

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Largest Protests Ever?

Homes burn as gunfire rocks the Khalidiyah district of Homs on Friday night.

See also Egypt Live Coverage: Former President Mubarak Learns His Fate
Friday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Another Mass Execution?

---

1943 GMT: Lebanon. The toll from today's clashes in Tripoli between supporters and opponents of the Syrian regime has risen to nine dead and 42 wounded, according to residents and a doctor.

1919 GMT: Syria. The Local Co-ordination Committees of Syria has said that 27 people died across the country today, including 11 in Homs Province and eight in Idlib Province.

A reporter for State TV, presenting live, is hit with a shoe by a man who shouts, "The Syrian TV is a liar!".

Click to read more ...

Bahrain Live Coverage: Activist Alkhawaja Ends His 110-Day Hunger Strike

Claimed footage of a convoy of security forces scattering a demonstration by women in A'ali on Sunday

See also Monday's Bahrain Live Coverage: Activist Nabeel Rajab Released from Detention

---

1525 GMT: Activists are reporting that their colleague Zainab Alkhawaja, detained since 21 April, has been released.

Alkhawaja, the daughter of detained human rights activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja, has been briefly held on several occasions since the start of mass protests in February 2011, but this was her first extended stay behind bars. She was fined last week for alleged assault of a policewoman and was being held for participation in illegal marches.

Click to read more ...

Bahrain Live Coverage: Regime on Human Rights "You Are Biased. P.S. We'll Sue You"

Protesting the detention of women, youth defy security forces to set up a burning-tyre barricade in Dar Kulaib (see 0719 GMT)

See also Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: After the Houla "Massacre", Another 60 Deaths
Saturday's Bahrain Live Coverage: UN Human Rights Council Sends Message to Regime

---

2024 GMT: Claimed footage of police shooting tear gas into a house in A'ali today:

Protesters help an old woman suffocating from tear gas:

Click to read more ...