Yemen Special: Al Qaeda Making Ricin? (Schmitt/Shanker)

You might have thought it was safe to wander back into the world now that Osama bin Laden is dead. But then you haven't noticed, amidst political instability in Yemen, the convergence of interest between the Yemeni regime and US counter-terrorism officials...

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American counterterrorism officials are increasingly concerned that the most dangerous regional arm of Al Qaeda is trying to produce the lethal poison ricin, to be packed around small explosives for attacks against the United States.

For more than a year, according to classified intelligence reports, Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Yemen has been making efforts to acquire large quantities of castor beans, which are required to produce ricin, a white, powdery toxin that is so deadly that just a speck can kill if it is inhaled or reaches the bloodstream.

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: And So Another Friday....

2016 GMT: Hundreds are arriving in Tahrir Square, as police block the gathering crowds from forming:

2012 GMT: The LCCS has this update on Daraa, an important neighborhood of Damascus:

Daraa: In an extremely tense situation, security forces are firing on women participating in a sit-in in Al-Hara city to demand that their detained children be released

Large demonstrations are reported across Syria. Like we said yesterday, this is the "new normal."

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The "New Normal"

1756 GMT: Semih Idiz offers an analysis on whether or not a visit by Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu to Syria will be effective. His conclusion is that Turkey has little recourse, and Assad is likely trying to bide time for his reforms to kick in (and I would add, he is attempting to discourage the opposition by killing it, a tactic which seems to be failing thus far). However, Idiz offers this interesting paragraph, hinting that even Assad will find it difficult to change Syria:

Regardless of his talk about reforms, Assad is not in a position to allow this even if he wanted to, given the privileges the Alawite minority has secured for itself over the decades and which it is unlikely to give up without a fight. The question for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan then is what happens if Assad does not comply with Turkey’s demands.

1747 GMT: The international human rights organisation Avaaz is reporting that 2 people have been killed today in a renewed military campaign against the city of Hama, Syria.

1743 GMT: US President Barack Obama and Turkey Prime Minister Erdogan conferred today, over the phone, about the ongoing crisis in Syria:

The White House says that in a call Obama made to Erdogan Thursday, the pair agreed that the violence in Syria must stop and the demands of the Syrian people for a transition to democracy must be met. Obama and Erdogan agreed to consult closely in the coming days as the situation in Syria develops.

1709 GMT: The LCCS is reporting that 12 people have been killed today in Syria, 11 in Qussair, outside of Homs.

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Raising Shoes to Assad

See Also Syria Video Special: The Destruction of Deir Ez Zor

Syria Video Analysis: Assessing Propaganda and "Truth" on Both Sides
Bahrain Video: How to Confuse Security Forces --- Use a Laser Pointer
Tuesday's Libya, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Turmoil in the West, Turmoil in the East

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2030 GMT: Night videos from Syria are coming in --- some of them are too dark to feature, but they include a march in Talbiseh in the south sympathising with the victims of Homs and the burning of a picture of President Assad in Jableh on the coast.

Kafranbel in the northwest:

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: "Come On, Bashar, Leave!"

2115 GMT: King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has just given a televised speech in which he declared that the "bloodshed of innocents, which has nothing to do with morals nor religion, is not acceptable" in Syria and Saudi Arabia cannot accept what is happening in Syria: "There is no justification."

Abdullah continued, "We demand a stop to the killings and bloodshed. Stop killing and start reforms".

Saudi Arabia has withdrawn its Ambassador from Damascus "for consultations".

2050 GMT: Douma outside Damascus tonight after Taraweeh prayers for Ramadan:

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Overwhelmed by Protests

2115 GMT: More night demonstrations in Syria, first in Homs, then in Kafranbel in the northwest:

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: How Many Have Died in Hama?

Today was a hot Friday in Ramadan, a day where traditionally people of faith fast during the day, and stay home out of the sun. Instead, in Syria, possibly 125,000 protesters, or possibly more, took to the streets. They marched, chanted, and prayed for change in their country. Those hopes were met with bullets more often than they were not.

The list of casualties today is likely to be between 15-30, not counting what happens tonight, and what happened today in Hama. Since Ramadan began last weekend, approximately half of the casualties in most of Syria have occurred at night. Regardless, today, and tonight, the Syrians are sending a clear message that the old ways will never return, and Syria will never be the same.

Meanwhile, still very little news out of Hama, and all of it bad. The city is under attack by at least 250 tanks, and their food, medicine, communication, and water supplies have been cut off. The people of the fourth largest city in Syria, a city larger than Boston, have no water. Tomorrow's forecast - 100+ degrees Fahrenheit.

And Yemen is heating up, Egyptians are still struggling with the military, the Libyan rebels still fight Gaddafi, and Bahrainis still protest. Ramadan is going to be a long, ugly, and important month.

We close with this live feed from an incredible and festive Lattakia, on Syria's coast:

We will return tomorrow morning.

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Battle for the Cities

Latest death toll in military operations in Syria today: 136

2020 GMT: Pro-reform demonstration today in Casablanca in Morocco:

2015 GMT: Silent, candle-lit vigil in Amuda in northeast Syria tonight for the victims of today's violence:

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Libya, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Opposition's Military Commander is Assassinated

Also see our latest video entry: Latest Syria Videos: Friday's Protests Across the Country - Set 1 AND Set 2

2026 GMT: An important update from an activist in Sana'a, Yemen. Loud explosions could be heard coming from north of the city, presumably fresh government airstrikes against a base that was captured by opposition tribesmen yesterday. (see update at 0920)

1959 GMT: A huge Conservative Islamist rally took place in Alexandria, Egypt, as well. Members of the 6th April Group, a liberal pro-democracy organization, were reportedly harassed and left the crowd:

1948 GMT: An important eyewitness account from a Kurdish neighborhood of Damascus:

In the Damascus neighbourhood of Rukin Aden, home to the capital’s largest Kurdish community, an eye-witness told Al Jazeera there were several hundred protesters gathered around the Saad Basha Mosque, calling for the toppling of the regime.

Anti-riot police and secret police blocked off the neighbourhood's main streets, arresting dozens of protesters and driving them off in large buses.

Protesters also reported land lines and internet had been cut since the morning.

“After four months, we are demonstrating every night despite the big security crackdown on us,” Ammar, a 28-year-old protestor told Al Jazeera.

“About 200 pro-democracy advocates and protesters were arrested but this will not stop our uprising. The regime is trying hard to finish the uprising before Ramadan. We are preparing ourselves for the Ramadan and we will organise big evening demonstrations every day, especially Rukin Adeen which has well-known religious figures and big mosques.”

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Egypt, Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: A Confrontation in Cairo

2000 GMT: Activists claims Syrian troops have assaulted the village of Sarjeh in Idleb Province in the northwestern Syria. Troops backed by tanks reportedly entered the village, arresting residents as electricity and water supplies were cut off.

Activists also reported reinforcements entering Homs and detentions in the capital of Damascus, especially the Rukn ad-Deen and Qaboun neighbourhoods where protests have escalated.

1950 GMT: A march in Nuwaidrat in Bahrain in support of opposition activist Ibrahim Sharif, who has been sentenced to five years in prison.

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