Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Talks and Declarations as 234 Die on Sunday

2131 GMT: Bahrain. EA's John Horne reports:

Amidst calls for an independent investigation, the Bahrain government has blamed the opposition for the reported bombings. Minister for Information Sameera Rajab said that the attacks "are due to religious fatwas issued by some religious figures who haven't ceased inciting violence against civilians and policemen". This is a likely - if false - reference to Sheikh Isa Qassim, spiritual leader of AlWefaq, the largest opposition society. The Interior Minister implied that the deaths were an end to any possible dialogue between the regime and the opposition:

What happened was a terror act and major part of our work focuses on chasing those terrorists. Negotiation couldn't be carried out with terrorists and talks couldn't take place within this violence.

In a statement, AlWefaq condemned the incidents, adding that it is its "fixed stance to refuse violence". They also demanded "independent parties" to investigate this and previous incidents, as well as "to allow credible media and human right organizations to take part in presenting the truth to the public".

2125 GMT: Bahrain. Images, broadcast by State TV, of the victims of today's bombings:

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: A "Ceasefire" Ends

Claimed footage of a regime airstrike on the Damascus suburb of Ghouta this morning

See also Syria Opinion: "Leadership is Nowhere to Be Found"
Turkey Special: A Tangled Situation --- Ankara, The Kurds, and US Messages
Sunday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: A Deadly Clash Between Insurgents in Aleppo

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2128 GMT: Syria. Protest in the Tareeq al-Bab area of Aleppo tonight:

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Ceasefire Theatre While Fighting Continues

1856 GMT: Syria. 78 people have been killed by the Assad regime so far today, according to the Local Coordination Committees:

33 martyrs were reported in Damascus and its Suburbs most of them in Douma; 14 in Aleppo; 14 in Idlib: 10 in Homs; 3 in Daraa; 2 in Deir Ezzor; 2 in Lattakia; 1 in Raqqa; 1 in Hasakeh and 1 in Hama.

The Local Coordination Committees (LCC) is an activist network operating both inside and outside of Syria. They claim to use stringent verification processes to ensure that a member of the LCC can vouch for any information posted either on their Facebook page or their website. The LCC also populates a database of those killed in the Syrian conflict, which can be seen at the website for the Center for Documentation of Violations in Syria.

The LCC's casualty figures are a mix of insurgents and civilians, and never include regime casualties. Syrian State Media has stopped reporting regime casualty figures.

According to the latest tally by the VDC, 31534 have been killed so far in this conflict.

1846 GMT: Libya/Egypt A suspect in the September 11th embassy attack in Benghazi was killed in a raid in Cairo, and several others were arrested. Ahram Online reports:

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: The UN Talks Cease-Fire --- Is Anyone Listening?

The devastastion in the Khalidiya section of Homs

See also Israel-Palestine Live Coverage (23 October): Gaza, Settlements, Iran, and Elections
Monday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: "Revolution Was Won When Wall of Fear Was Broken Down"

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1709 GMT: Kuwait. Last Thursday, former MPs Bader Al-Dahoum, Falah Al-Sawwagh, and Khaled Al-Tahous were arrested and charged of criticising the Emir at an opposition gathering on 10 October. The following picture was taken shortly after their arrest:

Today, they appeared in court with shaved heads, wearing prison uniforms:

Former MPs: Altahous, Alsawaq, &Aldahoum appear in court with shaved heads wearing prison uniforms. Source: Alrai..twitter.com/AlraiMediaGrou…

— mohammad Almutawa (@m_watan) October 23, 2012

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Lebanon, Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: A Day of Rage, 19 Months of Protests and Deaths

Claimed footage of Syrian forces lining up detainees in Deir Ez Zor Province --- activists claim some of those held were later among 75 dead found in a cemetery on Friday

See also Saturday's Syria, Lebanon (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Will a Beirut Bomb Widen the War?

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2011 GMT: Morocco. Mamfakinch reports that police broke up a protest by the February 20th Movement in Casablanca today before it even began, detaining demonstrators who were gathering.

The website names four of the activists who are still held.

1947 GMT: Lebanon. Scenes from Beirut today, captured by Antoun Issa on his camera phone:

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The Latest from Iran (18 October): The Mysterious Sliding Currency

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1405 GMT: Tough Talk of the Day. The Associated Press has picked up the latest chest-thumping, courtesy of Revolutionary Guards commander Hossein Salami:

An attack by the Zionist regime would be an opportunity to destroy that regime. Their defense mechanism is not planned for big and long wars. Their threats are only psychological and if they cross the limit or act upon those threats, (Israel) will definitely be destroyed.

1335 GMT: Only 10 of 40 brick factories in Varamin Province are open after subsidy cuts. About 2500 employees have been dismissed, with only 500 still working.

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: UN Envoy Brahimi Moves Through the Region

A regime fighter jet is downed outside Aleppo on Monday

See also Syria Analysis: Assessing The Significance of the Salafists in the Insurgency
Monday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: On a "Quiet" Sunday, 220 People Die

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1923 GMT: Syria. British police have arrested a man at Heathrow airport and and charged him with helping to kidnap western journalists inside Syria.

Dutch photographer Jeroen Oerlemans and British colleague John Cantlie were taken hostage on July 17 while working near the Syrian border with Turkey, and were released on July 26.

A police statement named the charged man as 26-year-old Shajul Islam. He was arrested on Oct. 9 with a woman of the same age as part of an investigation into travel to Syria in support of "alleged terrorist activity".. .The woman was released on Tuesday without charge, the statement said. A police spokesman said both were British nationals.

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The Latest from Iran (15 October): European Union Announces More Sanctions

See also Iran Feature: "Oil-Spill Sabotage To Block Strait of Hormuz" --- How Western Media Spreads a Scare Story
The Latest from Iran (14 October): Pretending All Is Well

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2040 GMT: Open All Hours Watch. According to the opposition site Kalemeh, Tehran Chief of Police has said that shopkeepers wishing to close for longer than the “established legal time” must obtain a permit.

Earlier this month many of the shops in the Tehran Bazaar closed amid a protest over the currency crisis.

2031 GMT: Ahmadinejad Watch. At least one notable MP is none too happy about the prospective interrogation of President Ahmadinejad --- Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, the head of the Principlist faction and a relative of the Supreme Leader, has said, “I don’t think questioning the President in the present circumstances is expedient....Unity and amity for solving the economic problems must be the priority of the Majlis and Government."

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: On a "Quiet" Sunday, 220 People Die

2046 GMT: Syria. More than 30,000 people have been killed so far. A number. In an area like Daraa, hundreds of shells fall every day. Numbers. But if you start watching this video from the 7:30 mark or before, you will be reminded of the horror that has become Syria:

@jmiller_ea watch this one from 8 mins in earlier todaySyria Daraa , Bosra Alshaabambuser.com/v/3064082

— kristin (@hlk01) October 15, 2012

@jmiller_ea chilled me to the bone

— kristin (@hlk01) October 15, 2012

2025 GMT: Syria. A disturbing video feed - a source we've used before for information from Hama posts a livestream of an incredible hail of bullets reportedly being fired in the city as we speak. We cannot confirm the video, but violence this intense won't stay quiet for long.

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The Latest from Iran (14 October): Pretending All Is Well

See also Iran Feature: A Letter from Detained Journalist Jila Bani Yaghoub to Her Imprisoned Husband
The Latest from Iran (13 October): "We Hate You War-Waging Power Seekers (Let's Talk)"

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1831 GMT: Currency Watch. Arya News reports the US dollar is being traded for 32850 Rials, a similar figure to that posted by ISNA.

1824 GMT: Parliament v. President. A follow-up to our report on Parliamentary pressure on the Government over its use of funds (see 1432 GMT)....

MP Gholamreza Assadollahi says Parliament will demand that the Government transfers its 20 trillion Toman (about $16.5 billon) profit from currency sales to National Funds to be used for development projects.

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