Iran Snap Analysis: Are the Oil Sanctions Tightening on Tehran?

We already knew about the US effort to persuade Japan and South Korea to reduce their supply of oil from Iran. What is striking now is the inclusion of China. Officially, Beijing is taking the firm stance that it will not agree to any stiffened sanctions. We have suspected that, behind the scenes, the Chinese might be more accommodating to a reduction of their imports from the Islamic Republic.  The New York Times observes, "This weekend [China's] prime minister, Wen Jiabao, will begin a five-day visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, perhaps to explore the prospect of increased energy imports."

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Syria, Bahrain (and Beyond): Calling for International Intervention?

Scene of the explosion in Midan in the Syrian capital Damascus today

See also Syria Video Special: Friday's Mass Protests Across the Country - Set1 and Set 2

Bahrain Analysis: Will 2012 Be Like 2011?
Syria and Bahrain Analysis: Evaluating The Protests and the Crackdowns --- Will New History Be Made?
Thursday's Bahrain, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: A Message to President Obama

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2310 GMT: Nabeel Rajab is home. He tweets of his experience:

It was minimum cost for freedom and justice - 9umoood [Resistance!]

Disturbingly, Nabeel also confirms earlier reports that his "family and house were attacked by teargas" whilst he was in hospital.

2240 GMT: Nabeel Rajab is out of hospital. Zainab Alkhawaja has uploaded this picture showing him as he walks out of Salmaniya hospital:

She quotes Nabeel as saying: ""The most important thing, is we don't give up. That's why next week we'll do the same as 2day"

Said Yousif Almuhafda, who was also injured after security forces attacked, came to visit Nabeel in the hospital. Zainab reports that he was threatened by police when he got there. Zainab later uploaded this photo of the two human rights campaigners which she captioned: "Two heroes after a rough day".

2105 GMT: This video shows Nabeel Rajab speaking to a police officer. As the officer withdraws, the crowd begins to chant, and then the video decays into gunfire and chaos:

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Turkey Feature: Angry Kurds Bury 35 Victims of Airstrikes

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On Friday, there was widespread anger in protests, both across Turkey and internationally, over the death of 35 Kurds, 18 of whom were children, in a Turkish airstrike on Uludere village in the city of Sirnak.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan  defended the military action while promising an investigation of an "operational mistake". His words have done little to appease Kurdish regard of the incident as a further indication of their abuse by the Turkish State.

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The Latest from Iran (14 December): Tehran Loses Another Friend?

See also Iran Feature: The Supreme Leader Is Worried --- Three Developments You Probably Don't Know
Iran Feature: The EA Story That Made It Big in Iranian Media
The Latest from Iran (13 December): Shoes Are Thrown at the President

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1855 GMT: Elections Watch. Ali Mohammad Gharibani, the head of the Coordination Council of the Reformist Front, has said that, that in the “absence of any possibility for the reformists to inform and campaign,” the reformists will not present a list of candidates or endorse any candidates in March's Parliamentary elections.

The council's announcement asserted, "After months of anticipation and struggle to open the political arena to fair elections and to provide a transparent election process, the situation is in effect becoming more and more restrictive.”

In addition to the standard vetting of candidates by the Guardian Council, the regime has suspended and suppressed major reformist groups such as the Islamic Iran Participation Front, the Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution, and Etemade Melli.

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Syria, Egypt (and Beyond) Liveblog: A United Front

A protest in Harasta in Syria last night

See Also, Bahrain Feature : How The Regime Is Restoring Peace, The American Way

Syria Opinion: Why There Should --- And Will --- Be a No-Fly Zone

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2111 GMT: The latest news from Yemen is that 3 soldiers and 5 civilians have died in Taiz, as the government shelled the city for yet another day. Earlier, before some of this violence, Mohammed Basindwa, appointed by the opposition to lead the transitional government, said that if the violence continues it could threaten the GCC deal. Well, the violence did continue throughout the day, and the death toll did rise, so we'll soon see whether Basindwa withdraws from the negotiated deal.

2015 GMT: Activists share this video, which reportedly shows anti-Assad protesters chanting in the clear presence of tanks and snipers in Taftanaz, Idlib province, reportedly today. We have no way of verifying the details:

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Syria Opinion: Why There Should --- And Will --- Be a No-Fly Zone

The moral reasons for a no-fly zone have only grown as the humanitarian crisis has worsened. The geopolitical incentives are stronger than ever. Now the logistical and practical possibilities are emerging.

There will be a no-fly zone, with or without US participation. Turkey wants it, France is chomping at the bit for it, and at the end of the day the rest of the world will realize that there is at least one more domino that needs to fall.

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Egypt (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Turmoil and Confusion

Activist montage of the march today in Sitra in Bahrain for 16-year-old Ali Alsatrawi, killed last week by a police jeep, and the attack on it by security forces

See also Bahrain Video Diary, Part 3: The Freedom Torch Marches To Its Final Destination"
Monday's Bahrain, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: "The Government Wants the People To Become More Violent"
Monday's Egypt (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Newest Battle of Tahrir Square

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2145 GMT: Numerous reports from Tahrir Square in Cairo are indicating "the most potent tear gas yet".

Discussion is pointing to the use by Egyptian security forces of CR gas, whose "effects are approximately 6 to 10 times more powerful than those of CS gas".

The gathering in Alexandria tonight:

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The Latest from Iran (17 November): The Regime Mobilises...for Occupy Wall Street

2118 GMT: Rumour of the Day. The hard-line Raja News claims that the President cancelled his attendance of the meeting of gas-exporting countries in Doha at the last minute because of Qatar's support for the suspension of Syria from the Arab League.

2115 GMT: Bank Fraud Watch. According to the "hard-line" Arya News, MP Mahmoud Ahmadi-Bighash has asked the judiciary to publish the names of 10 legislators involved in the $2.6 billion bank fraud.

2105 GMT: Press Watch. Rah-e Sabz reports that Parliament has banned critical journalists from covering its proceedings.

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Bahrain, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Playing the Iran Card

2040 GMT: Defiance and celebration --- Protesters in Ma'arrat al Nouman chant "Screw Iran and Screw Russia!"

2032 GMT: This video (cell phone, poor quality) claims to show tanks storming Sarmeen Idlib (in the hotspot between Idlib city and Saraqeb) amongst gunfire:

2022 GMT: Evening protests in Kafersita, Hama:

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Deaths Return to Hama

Video of Friday's killings in Hama in Syria outside a mosque

See also Bahrain 1st-Hand: The People of Sitra "We Are Still Here. We Are Demanding. We Exist"
"Yes, We Will Tweet": How a Flashmob Took Over a New Media Conference in Lebanon
Bahrain Feature: The Freedom Torch Protests
Syria Video Special: Today's Protests Across the Country
Friday's Syria, Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Back on the Streets?

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1950 GMT: Activists say 10 Syrian security agents and an army deserter were killed on Saturday when a bus transporting security agents between the villages of Al-Habit and Kafrnabuda in Idlib Province, in northwestern Syria close to the Turkish border, was ambushed "by armed men, probably deserters".

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights had said that 17 soldiers were killed late on Friday in the central city of Homs when gunmen, believed to be deserters, attacked two checkpoints.

Elsewhere on Saturday, according to the Observatory, five civilians, including a woman and a 15-year-old teenager, were killed and several wounded by gunfire from Syrian forces and snipers in Homs Province (see 1915 GMT).

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