1945 GMT: One of many "We are All Meshaal Tammo" demonstrations tonight in Syria, commemorating the Kurdish activist who was killed yesterday. In the Bab Amr section of Homs, a large crowd chant "Azadi (Freedom)" and "The Syrian people are one":
1845 GMT: Al Jazeera English shows footage of security forces firing on marchers at the funeral of Kurdish activist Meshaal Tammo. Up to five people were killed, according to activists (see 1610 GMT):
And video of gunfire in the Damascus suburb of Douma after the funeral of Osama Al-Shayfouni:
2020 GMT: We close this liveblog with video from a very large protest in Qamishli, Syria, where a leading Kurdish activist and opposition spokesman was killed earlier today. Combined with the beating of a former member of parliament, turned activist, the Syrian opposition is more active tonight than they have been, arguably, since Ramadan.
In Bahrain, the opposition is also energized by a new martyr, as police broke up a funeral procession for 16 year old Ahmed Jabber al Qattan, and raids are continuing into the night.
In both locations, these new actions by the regimes are likely to have a far-reaching ripple effect on the opposition movements, and they are already becoming fresh symbols for Arab Spring, both inside Bahrain and Syria, and beyond.
1953 GMT: According to multiple sources, the Bahraini opposition did not go "quietly into that good night" after the funeral for 16 year old Ahmed Jabber al Qattan was broken up by police. Protests, and police raids, have lasted well into the night.
An activist Tweets this video, and according to the voice on the recording, this is the scene in Sitra tonight. Gunfire (or flash grenades, or perhaps tear gas) can be hear, and police vehicles can be seen moving into the vehicle, while protesters honk out a warning to the rhythm of "down down Hamad."
1940 GMT: And now we've finally started to see the first videos from some of the very large protests reported this evening in memory of Meshaal Tammo. This video was taken in Amouda, where thousands reportedly took to the streets when news of the assassination broke:
2107 GMT: A source in Bahrain forwards us several pictures, reportedly showing a security crackdown in several villages this evening.
According to the report, this is the scene in Daih:
The village of Saar:
2055 GMT: A source forwards us this Facebook Page which shows the body of Ahmed Jabber al-Qattan (may be disturbing to some viewers), a 16 year old boy reportedly killed today by the Bahraini police (see updates below).
One thing to note, if the pictures can be validated, the evidence that birdshot was used is obvious.
1910 GMT: Earlier we reported that there were protests in Saudi Arabia. Now, Saudi State News SPA is reporting that 14 people were injured, including 11 police officers, during attacks sponsored by foreign governments:
"A group of outlaws and rioters on motorbikes gathered" at a roundabout in the village of Al-Awamia in Al-Qatif province on Monday "carrying petrol bombs," SPA said, citing the Sunni-ruled kingdom's interior ministry.
The group carried out acts causing "insecurity with incitement from a foreign country that aims to undermine the nation's security and stability," SPA quoted a ministry spokesman as saying.
"Security forces managed to deal with those traitors at the spot and after they were dispersed, machinegun fire erupted from a nearby neighbourhood
Activists report a much different story. According to them, several elderly men were injured in Awamya, and one man had a heart attack while they arrested his son. Several protesters have reportedly been shot by Saudi security, and afterwards groups of young men responded to the violence by lighting police cars on fire and throwing rocks. They have also provided several videos of those events, reportedly taken last night, and it appears that those men were also met with gunfire, which is clearly audible. Also, in 1 video, a protester appears to have been shot with bird-shot:
Homs Protester: "Arrest Me"On August 19, a friend named Abu Salah drove me to a daytime funeral and demonstration in the eastern Homs slum of Bab Assiba.
Abu Salah was a businessman who lived in the western neighbourhood of Waer and helped the opposition. He drove a car with fake license plates and delivered aid from wealthy areas such as Ghota, Inshaat and Hamra to the poorer neighbourhoods across town - such as Bab Assiba. We stopped to pick up a friend of his, a man with a beard but no moustache, a sign of conservatism.
As we drove, he received a call letting him know that his cousin, Nawar Nawriz, had died from injuries received the previous night - when attackers had shot at the Fatima mosque while he was praying. After being wounded he was taken to a "field hospital" - a safe house used as a clinic.
Abu Salah told me that opposition supporters donated blood themselves, but they lacked the packs to hold the blood and they needed morphine and medicine to prevent infections and to meet medical needs.
1947 GMT: An activist, claiming he was speaking from hiding, has said that Syrian troops have detained more than 3,000 people in the past three days in house-to-house sweeps in Rastan,.
The Syrian military reportedly occupied the town of 70,000 in Homs Province after a five-day assault last week. The activist said the detainees were being held at a cement factory, schools, and the Sports Club, a massive four-storey compound.
Syria's state-media said troops moved into Rastan to hunt down "armed terrorists".
Meanwhile, a funeral procession was held for the 21-year-old son of Syria's top Sunni Muslim cleric, Grand Mufti Ahmad Badreddine Hassoun.
Hassoun's son was killed on Sunday in an ambush in northern Syria. The cleric, considered a close supporter of the Assad regime, told hundreds of people attending the funeral at a mosque in Aleppo that dissenters working against Syria from abroad: "Come and say whatever you want here and if anyone rejects [you], I will be with you in the opposition.You want freedom, you want justice then come here and build it with us in Syria."
Hassoun blamed fatwas or religious edicts by unnamed clerics, living abroad, for the death of his son.
1905 GMT: A man claiming to be Moussa Ibrahim, the spokesman for former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, has denied claims that he was captured this week by forces of the National Transitional Council, outside of Qaddafi's hometown of Sirte.
"This information is a lie and does not reflect reality," the man said in a live telephone interview with Syrian-based Arrai television, an outlet for declarations by Qaddafi and his allies.
On Thursday, NTC field commanders said Ibrahim had been captured as he attempted to flee Sirte in a car. A spokesman for the NTC's Misrata military council said the next day: "We cannot confirm he was arrested."
Meanwhile, the NTC has declared a two-day truce to allow civilians to leave Sirte, as its forces continue to try to take one of Qaddafi's last two strongholds.
And in the Libyan capital Tripoli, the first commercial flight since March --- a jet from Istanbul --- has landed.
Flags representing Turkey and Libya's new leadership flew outside Mitiga International Airport as the plane touched down.
A U.N. Security Council resolution had imposed a no-fly zone in March.
1855 GMT: An EA reader asks if there has been any footage of protests in the Deir Ez Zor area of northeast Syria this weekend --- a couple of answers among many clips, beginning with the Al Arfi neighbourhood:
2010 GMT: An EA source in Bahrain reports blocked roads in many villages, some blocked by protesters to prevent police getting in, others blocked by police to prevent protesters getting out. The source continues, "There are clashes between protesters and police in many of the villages. On my round now I passed on at least seven protests/clashes."
Thousands came out for the rally, with most stages set up by leftist and revolutionary youth movements, chanting against the ruling Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces and its head, Field-Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi: "Tell the truth! Will you nominate yourself for the Presidency?" demonstrators shouted in reference to SCAF chief Field-Marshal Hussein Tantawi. Many protesters wore shirts with stickers reading “No to SCAF” and carried signs bearing anti-SCAF slogans. One banner depicted a turtle, reflecting popular frustration with the slow pace of change during the post-Mubarak transitional period.
One bright spot amidst the disappoointment: Hollywood actor and political activist Sean Penn, waving an Egyptian flag, put in an appearance.
Asked at a news conference in Tripoli about the timetable for the government's announcement, Jibril said: "I hope that soon we will free Sirte and Bani Walid to begin negotiations on the formation of the transitional government, of which I will not be a part."
1953 GMT: A source in Bahrain informs us that there were protests in 25 villages today, including Sanabis, Al Eker, Karbabad, Nabih-Saleh, Al Dair, Barbar, Bani-Jamra, North & South Sehla, Jabalat-Habashi, Saddad, Bori, A'ali, Salmabad, Nuwaidrat, Alma'ameer, Al Juffair, Tubli, and Al Mugsha. In Sitra, there were protests in Al Qarya, Al Kharjia, Wadyan, Mhaza, Sufalah, and Markkuban. Below is a map of the protests:
Saturday, October 8, 2011 at 19:58 | ;)
;)
