Bahrain Propaganda 101: The Regime Turns Britain's Criticism Into Praise

Claimed footage of police beating protester after funeral of a political prisoner, 3 October 2012

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Consider this press release from the Bahrain News Agency on a statement on Friday by Hague's deputy, Minister of State Alistair Burt:

"He hailed the formation of the ombudsman at the Interior Ministry to probe complaints and grievances and supervising inquiries, pointing out that the issues revealed in the BICI report would require a long time to address."

Now consider what Burt actually wrote:

"We are concerned by some of the recent decisions taken by the Bahraini Government, particularly on human rights, and we’re clear that there are areas where progress on implementation has been too slow and others where it is lacking."

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Damascus Shakes as Assad Regime Wobbles

2114 GMT: Syria. Markito0171 posts an interesting video, reportedly taken yesterday, showing an FSA rocket attack on an airforce intelligence building in Aleppo (map):

#Syria #Aleppo Video of the Air Force Intelligence building- besieged from rebelsyoutube.com/watch?v=O51xBi… wikimapia.org/#lat=36.229081…

— Mark (@markito0171) November 21, 2012

As you can see from the screenshot of Google maps, the video matches the satellite images:

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: International Meeting in London Discusses Support for "New" Opposition

2240 GMT: Syria. The website for the FSA in AlBukamal still claims that despite the fact that 37 Assad soldiers defected today, the Hamdan airport (map) is still in Assad hands.

Still, the FSA made significant strides against it today. The FSA has demonstrated that it is stronger in the east than many analysts expected. If this base falls, it will be a major blow to the Assad military in the region.

2139 GMT: Syria. Al Jazeera reports on how civilian volunteers, using Italian ambulances, help save lives in the northern city of Aleppo:

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The Latest from Iran (24 October): The Interrogation of Ahmadinejad?

See also Iran Feature: The Week in Civil Society --- From Economic Crisis to Nasrin Sotoudeh's Hunger Strike
The Latest from Iran (23 October): Ahmadinejad v. the Judiciary

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1735 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. British Foreign Secretary William Hague has called on Iran to reconsider the "outrageous" and "deplorable" detention of human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, who is in the second week of her hunger strike.

Sotoudeh is serving a six-year prison sentence, with a 20-year ban on legal practice, on charges of "acting against the national security" and "propaganda against the regime".

"Imprisoning Nasrin Sotoudeh on the outrageous basis of 'co-operation with Shirin Ebadi's Centre for the Defence of Human Rights' is deplorable," Hague said. "We urge the Iranian authorities to review her case urgently. We will continue to stand up for human rights defenders in Iran."

A spokesman for European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton also intervened, "We are following the case of Nasrin Sotoudeh and other human rights defenders in Iran with great concern. We will continue to campaign for the charges against them to be dropped, and look to Iran to respect the human rights obligations it has signed up to."

1733 GMT: Rafsanjani Watch. Former President Hashemi Rafsanjani has jumped into the latest dispute around the President, "Creating tensions and rifts within political factions is poison for Iran and its system."

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Turkey-Syria Analysis: What Will Ankara Do Now? What Should It Do?

Turkey's Erdogan with Syria's AssadWednesday's mortar that fell on Akcakale in southeastern Turkey was not the first fired by Syrian forces across the border, but it was the first to kill Turkish civilians, slaying three women and two children. So --- given that Syria's downing of a Turkish reconnaissance aircraft in July and subsequent manoeuvres near the border had brought Ankara's warning of a red line --- Ankara's retaliation with artillery fire against Syrian bases was not surprising.

The question was and still is: what comes next?

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The Latest from Iran (9 September): Sanctions, More Sanctions, No Talks

See also The Latest from Iran (8 September): The Threat Is Not Israel --- It's the Economy

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1942 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Children's rights' activist Saeed Shirzad, who was detained while helping victims of August's earthquake in East Azerbaijan, has been released.

1925 GMT: The Currency Crisis and Politics. Two stories pointing to the possible rise of political tensions over the weakening Iranian currency.

The head of the Central Bank, Mahmoud Bahmani, has indicated the Bank will not release reserves to bolster the currency, saying people still have dollars at home.

That answer is unlikely to satisfy prominent conservative MP Ahmad Tavakoli, who accused the Central Bank of withholding dollars. That allegation fits the news, posted on EA yesterday, that importers have been able to get foreign currency at official rates to release their goods from ports.

An EA correspondent assesses, "I think this is a full-fledged battle tween Ahmadinejad and his opponents about control of the currency market. The Supreme Leader is afraid to enter because of collateral damage."

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: The Battle for Aleppo Continues

See also Syria Analysis: Recognising A War of Attrition
Syria Audio Feature: Assessing the Latest in Aleppo and Beyond --- Scott Lucas with Monocle 24
Thursday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: The Insurgents Hold Out in Aleppo

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2022 GMT: Syria. The Local Coordination Committees report that 150 people have been killed today by security forces. Seventy-five of the deaths were in Aleppo, with 45 "unidentified corpses" found in the Salah Ed Dine district.

2012 GMT: Syria. The demonstration in Kafromeh in Idlib Province today:

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Iran Feature: Can Tehran and the West Close the Nuclear "Trust Gap"? (Wheeler/Nedal)

The flaw at the heart of Western policy has been its failure to recognise the extent to which its use of threats as a means of leveraging concessions from Iran has served to increase Iranian mistrust. This, in turn, has strengthened the hand of those members of the Iranian leadership who argue that the only means of safeguarding the country’s security lies in the maintenance of a latent nuclear weapons capability.

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The Latest from Iran (14 June): Tough Talk Based on Bad Economics

See also Remember Iran: The Protests, the Repression...and the "Hope That Runs The World"
Remember Iran Flashback: "The Obama Administration Fails to React" (14 June 2009)
Remember Iran Flashback: 14 June 2009 Live Coverage --- "More than 100" Arrested as Greens Prepare Rally
The Latest from Iran (13 June): The Reformists and the Next Election

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Supreme Leader Addresses MPs, 13 June1515 GMT: Suppressing the Lawyers. Shadi Sadr summarises the regime's efforts to curb activism and dissent through intimidation and imprisonment of attorneys:

Between June 2009 and July 2011 at least 42 lawyers were arrested and at least 7 lawyers were forced to leave the country. Mohammad Ali Dadkhah was recently sentenced to 9 years' imprisonment and a 10 year ban on practicing law. The security officials have told him that either he will give a televised interview in which he will state that he was given money by foreign governments for defending his client or he has to go to prison....

Harassing the lawyers is not limited to their detention and sentencing. Most of the lawyers who have been detained are repeatedly questioned for having defended their clients. They are summoned and interrogated by security forces in short intervals. Many have been forced to promise not to give interviews to the media regarding the conditions of their clients. For this reason, methods of providing information regarding the conditions of the political prisoners are being blocked more and more every day. Some of the lawyers are told that they cannot accept political case files. For this reason, many prisoners of conscience are deprived of their right to a defense, prescribed by the Iranian constitution.

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: 96 Die Amid International Fiddling

A Saturday evening rally in the Bustan Al Qasr section of Aleppo

See also Syria Feature: Razan Ghazzawi's Speech for Her Human Rights Defenders Award
Egypt Video Feature: State TV's "Don't Talk to Foreigners" Warning
Saturday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Fighting in the Streets of Damascus

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1930 GMT: Libya. Fighting between government forces and Toubou tribesmen has continued for a second day, with at least 16 people killed.

Government officials said the fighting began after members of the Toubou tribe attacked a checkpoint and tried to gain access to a security building to steal vehicles. However, representatives of the Toubou tribe said they were shelled by the Libya Shield Brigade, former insurgents under Government control, with residents killed and houses burned.

Meanwhile, in Tripoli, officials confirmed that Assembly elections planned for later this month has been postponed to 7 July. The authorities have said that extra time is needed to consider the applications of more than 4000 candidates.

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