Libya, Yemen (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Hanging On

1957 GMT: Protesters gathered for a fifth day in Deraa, Syria, where authorities have arrested a leading opposition figure, Louai Hussein. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that, "his house was broken into. The door was smashed. His fate is unknown." 

Hundreds gathered under very tight security, and the AFP is reporting that their photographer and videographer were attacked by security forces.

Perhaps the most important news, however, is the rumor that the region's governor, Faisal Kalthoum, has been fired, which was one of the demands of the protesters. This has not been confirmed. 

1930 GMT: Al Jazeera English's James Bays filed this report earlier today from the front line outside Ajdabiya in eastern Libya. He reports an attack near his position and says, "No one really is making any progress. The opposition are where they were 24 hours ago....They are lightly armed volunteers....A professional officer on the rebel side told me they're very brave but to the point of being suicidal. Gaddafi forces are much more heavily armed. The opposition have the numbers and they seem to have the momentum but on the other side the Gaddafi forces have the power."

1915 GMT: Thanks to James Miller for taking the LiveBlog through the afternoon.

Libyan State TV is claiming live coverage of the capital under fire, with the presenter saying, "Tripoli is being bombarded now." The sky was lit with fire and the sound of anti-aircraft weaponry could be heard.

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Top 10 List: Why Libya 2011 is Not Iraq 2003 (Cole)

1. The action in Libya was authorized by the United Nations Security Council. That in Iraq was not. By the UN Charter, military action after 1945 should either come as self-defense or with UNSC authorization. Most countries in the world are signatories to the charter and bound by its provisions.

2. The Libyan people had risen up and thrown off the Qaddafi regime, with some 80-90 percent of the country having gone out of his hands before he started having tank commanders fire shells into peaceful crowds. It was this vast majority of the Libyan people that demanded the UN no-fly zone. In 2002-3 there was no similar popular movement against Saddam Hussein.

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Latest on Libya and Yemen: Live Feed from Al Jazeera English

Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Getting Close to Qaddafi

1930 GMT: Libyan State TV is reporting coalition airstrikes on Tripoli.

1920 GMT: Army Officers: Al Jazeera English offers a list of recent resignations and defections by Yemeni officials to the opposition, including six military commanders, dozens of officers, 17 Ambassadors, the entire staff of the Yemeni Embassy in the US except the Ambassador, three MPs, and the leader of Yemen's most powerful tribe.

1910 GMT: President Obama, on a visit to Chile, has spoken to reporters about Chile. He reiterated that "it is U.S. policy" that Libyan leader Moammar Qaddafi "has to go" and the international community "can't stand by with empty words" in the face of an imminent humanitarian catastrophe.

At the same time, Obama anticipated that the US would step back from leading the Libyan military mission when Libya's air defences were disabled: "We anticipate this transition to take place in a matter of days, not weeks."

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Libya (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Coalition Attacks

Footage from Britain's Channel 4 of the aftermath of coalition airstrikes on Libya

2210 GMT: We're going on an overnight break. Coverage continues via the Live Feed from Al Jazeera English.

2145 GMT: Little confirmed information tonight, but several blasts have rocked the Libyan capital Tripoli, with a plume of smoke seen from the direction of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi's home in the Bab el-Aziziya compound in a south Tripoli suburb.

1920 GMT: Latest from Libya....

There was a spate of fire from anti-aircraft guns, apparently from nervous troops expecting airstrikes, in Tripoli. The capital is now quiet.

The Libyan military spokesman announced a new ceasefire for 9 p.m. local time (1900 GMT).

An Italian tugboat has been escorted out of port by officials of the Libyan port authority and military. The 11-member crew had been detained this weekend.

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Libya Video: The Last Broadcast of Mohammed Nabbous --- The Message from His Widow

On Sunday, journalist Mohammed Nabbous was killed as he recorded a firefight in Benghazi. Nabbous was the force behind Libya Alhurra Radio and TV, which brought out the message of the uprising againt the regime of Muammar Qaddafi.

This is Nabbous's last broadcast, transmitted Saturday morning as regime forces attacked opposition-held Benghazi. Below that is the message put out by Nabbous's widow as she announced his death: "What he started has got to go on, no matter what happens."

See also: Libya Video: Libya Alhurra's Mohamed Nabbous "We Want Our Freedom" (19 February)

Watch live streaming video from libya17feb at livestream.com

Watch live streaming video from libya17feb at livestream.com

Libya, Yemen, Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: No Cease-Fires

2200 GMT: We're going to take an overnight break. Coverage switches to our Live Feed from Al Jazeera English.

2145 GMT: Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi is now speaking by phone. He says that the coalition attack will launch a second Crusade, which will be countered by the Libyan people. He then asks Africans and South Americans to stand by the regime.

Gaddafi declares that the regime must now open the weapons depots and arm all Libyans. He then ends --- a very un-Qaddafi speech of less than three minutes.

2115 GMT: Activists claim that lawyer Ragia Omran was kidnapped today from a polling station in Egypt during the referendum on the Constiutional amendments.

2110 GMT: French broadcasters, refuting the claims of Libyan State TV (see 2050 GMT), reports that all French aircraft have returned safely from missions over Libya.

2105 GMT: Four Al Jazeera journalists have been detained in western Libya.

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Libya Fighting and a No-Fly Zone: Scott Lucas on the BBC

This morning I had a wide-ranging chat with BBC Radio WM, amidst reports of the regime's advance on opposition-held Benghazi and the international community's discussion of enforcement of a no-fly zone. (At that point, I did not have the confirmed information that a jet had been shot down over Benghazi.)

The conversation took in the latest military situation, the Qaddafi regime's propaganda (including the threat to wield terrorist attacks on "the West"), and my personal opinion on whether foreign support of the Libyan opposition was justified.

The discussion starts just after the 2:06.00 mark.

Libya Video: Live Stream from Opposition-Held Benghazi

With regime forces moving towards the opposition base of Benghazi, Libya's second-largest city, EA is linking to Libya Alhurra TV, the opposition channel. In the circumstances, there may be technical difficulties and interruptions:

Watch live streaming video from libya17feb at livestream.com

Libya Video: Today's Statement by President Obama