Syria, Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Questions in the Silence from Homs

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1936 GMT: The Palestinian prisoners return to the West Bank:

One of the accusations floating around is that some of these prisoners are, in fact, murderers, and Israel is likely to pay a high price for this prisoner exchange. Osama Hamdan, a senior member of Hamas, responds to the accusations:

See Israel Special: How Gilad Shalit Saved Prime Minister Netanyahu

1821 GMT: In Daraa, the crisis may be even wider spread than we initially thought. The LCCS posts:

Daraa: Msaifra: Authorities cut off electricity to the town after a massive night protest and security forces raiding of it

So, with a massive military campaign under way in Daraa proper, and in Harak, and perhaps now one about to be underway in MSaifra, while the military is conducting unprecedented raids near Damascus, and the campaign against Homs continues, one wonders how stretched Assad's military is as the current moment. It appears that he is threatened enough by the strength of this opposition that he has tanks deployed from Lebanon to the border with Turkey.

1812 GMT: A tank in the Bab Sbaa (the Lion's Gate) district of Homs. Protesters sing at it, a large enough threat to merit the closing of the hatch. Also, the man on the right appears to be filling his truck with sandbags (flour, sugar?) perhaps in order to keep shrapnel out of his store front. Strange days, indeed:

1801 GMT: This video appears to be taken slightly after our last video from Saqba, Damascus. Security forces appear to be aiming down their sights (to intimidate the city?), while others appear to question some civilians.With the number of the buses we have seen in videos, there are easily thousands of security forces in Saqba today.

1755 GMT: Two videos, reportedly taken today in Daraa. The first, from overhead, shows gunfire and smoke rising. The second shows a tank deploying in the street, nearly running over civilians:

1738 GMT: Al Jazeera is reporting that 7 people have been killed in the capital city of Yemen, Sana'a, after government supporters opened fire on protesters:

Residents of Sanaa told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that several injured people were kidnapped after protesters calling on Saleh to step down were trapped by security forces inside the Al-Qaa neighborhood.

According to the witnesses, armed men loyal to the embattled president had erected tents in the street to block an anti-government march.

The protesters came under attack as they marched from Change Square to Al-Qaa, a district where government buildings are located.

1707 GMT: There are reports that the protests in Amuda (see last update) were disrupted by security forces:

1701 GMT: These two videos were reportedly taken today in the Kurdish town of Amuda, Syria. The protesters are remembering the Kurdish leader, Maashaal Tammo, who was killed last week by the Syrian security forces:

1652 GMT: On a day where the world is already watching the historic prisoner swap between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, a Twitter account linked to the hacking group Anonymous and supporting Syria tweets this about a video reportedly showing a protest in the Golan Heights in solidarity with the Syrian uprising:

"On a side note, this peaceful protest was allowed by the Israeli occupying government in the Syrian #Golan "

1639 GMT: Now Lebanon (the only other website that seems to be covering any news from Syria besides EA right now) is now reporting that today's death toll has been raised to 7 (according to Al Jazeera Arabic's broadcast). With yesterday's death toll having already been higher than 25, the reports that 45-50 people have been killed in 2 days are not unrealistic.

And Now Lebanon has added 1 to that list. They are now reporting that a Syrian army unit crossed the bordfer into Lebanon and killed 1 person in the town of Al-Qaa, where arrests are also reported.

1539 GMT: An activist has this report, which adds some credence to the report, made by Al Arabiya, that 2 have been killed and as many as 70 wounded in al Harak, Daraa, Syria:

"Daraa: Herak: martyrdom of Mohammad Al-Baloot,bringing the number of the town's martyrs today 2 two,in addition to tens of wounded"

Previously, the LCCS reported that another young man, Raafat Khaled Al-Deik, was also killed in Harak.

1532 GMT: According to Now Lebanon:

"Security forces killed two people and injured 70 others in the Daraa town of Harak, Al-Arabiya television reported."

Al Arabiya is somewhat prone to exaggeration, but there have been confirmed reports of at least 1 dead and others injured.

1528 GMT: A reliable activist posts this detail, with a possible motive, about Saqba, Damascus:

"Damascus suburbs: Saqba: The village is now besieged by about 3,000 security and military troops because of a defection last Friday"

1524 GMT: This video reportedly shows armored vehicles deploying inside the Damascus suburb of Saqba:

1513 GMT: An activist who is typically reliable, reportedly in Syria, and who has been interviewed by major media sources in the past, tweets this. It matches with some other reports:

"BREAKING: Full widespan assualt on #Saqba suburb of #Damascus right now, helicopters sited, homes raided, heavy gunfire, assault vehicles in"

1505 GMT: The LCCS has even more recent reports, suggesting that the death toll may rise even further. According to the LCCS, at least 1 protester has been killed in the violence in al Harak, Daraa, and at least 5 others have been shot. In Homs, 4 people have been killed (including, according to the LCCS, an Alawite who had joined the protests) in the Bab Sbaa (Lion's gate) district of Homs.

LCCS also reports from the important suburb of Saqba, a hotbed of dissent in recent weeks:

Damascus Suburbs: Saqba: heavy shooting and campaign of arrests and random raids amid deployment of security and army units

1502 GMT: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights is reporting that 45 people, including 11 soldiers, have been killed in the last two days, many in the last 24 hours, and 34 in Homs alone.

1456 GMT: Students in Idlib, Syria, demand a return to a free system:

1441 GMT: Another video of another claimed protest in Daraa, this one just north of the last one in Basr al Harir (MAP):

1435 GMT: A large protest in Naanh, Daraa, Syria, just a few miles northeast of Al Harak, where a leading sheikh has been "kidnapped" by Shabiha (see update at 1406) and violence has reportedly erupted (map):

1430 GMT: A large student protest in Barzeh, Damascus, where several other videos have also emerged in the last few minutes:

1423 GMT: Now Lebanon, citing the London based Syrian Observatory of Human Rights, is also report an intense military escalation in and around Damascus, as well as a growing military resistance in Idlib province, in the north near the border with Turkey:

A sniper killed a military intelligence officer in Edleb province close to the Turkish border as armed resistance to the security forces spread, while search operations in the flashpoint central province of Homs wounded 15 people, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

Around the capital, "several towns were targeted by the fiercest security operations since the start of the revolution" in mid-March, the Britain-based watchdog said in a statement received in Nicosia.

According to the report, snipers have been deployed around Damascus, and the city is effectively under blockade.

1406 GMT: Potentially major news from Harak, Daraa, Syria today. The LCCS is reporting that Sheikh Wajih al-Qaddah was "kidnapped by Shabiha" out of his home today, there have been major protests as a result, and the Syrian security forces have opened fire. Casualties are reported.

Who is Sheikh Wajih al-Qaddah? According to Syrian State Run TV, SANA, a "terrorist" "confessed" on Saturday (or, as the opposition would claim, one activist who was possibly tortured and threatened if he did not speak). That "terrorist," Youssef Ghazi al-Saleh, said that the Sheikh had incited violence and was working with the Lebanese to overthrow the government and encourage activists to kill security personnel. Al-Saleh even went as far as to directly accuse Sheikh al-Qaddah as pulling the trigger and killing security forces himself.

1347 GMT: Earlier, Al Jazeera reported that 6 protesters were killed by pro-Saleh forces in Sana'a, Yemen. Now, activists have posted this video reportedly showing armed Saleh supports on the roof of a building near the rally:

Activists have also posted this GRAPHIC picture gallery, reportedly of the wounded from today's violence.

This video reportedly shows a child crying over the body of his father who was killed today in Sana'a.

1332 GMT: The Local Coordinating Committees of Syria provide us with these reports from the Damascus suburbs, where some activists are reporting an intensification of military presence:

Damascus Suburbs: heavy shooting in western Ghota, and more security and military reinforcements arrived to the area

Damascus Suburbs: cut off land and cellular communications on Harasta, and fears of a wide raids campaign

Damascus Suburbs: Erbeen: Security units searched the bags of school students randomly in the streets today

Damascus Suburbs: Douma: Raiding campaign of houses and farms is still on in more than one area in the town with heavy existence of military and security forces inside the town

And from Hama:

Heavy gunfire in Zowar area which lies between the towns of Taibet Al-Imam and Halfaya and news about military defections in the area

From Homs:

Homs: Security and military reinforcements with support of armored vehicles are heading towards the neighborhood of Baba Amr after violent clashes between defacted soldiers and the state's forces

Perhaps we've come to expect this level of reporting from Homs, less so in Hama (Zowar and Taibet Al-Imam are not towns I am familiar with, though Halfaya is occasionally a hot spot). However, the reports from Damascus appear, on the surface, to signal an intensification of military presence. We'll see if we can find the video evidence.

1328 GMT: James Bays posts this photo of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton holding a press conference with the National Transitional Council's Mahmoud Jabril:

1319 GMT: Now Lebanon links to this video, reportedly of a very large crowd of protesters in the Al Qusour district of Homs, chanting for freedom. Apparently, one of the protesters raises a sign thanking Al Jazeera for its coverage of the uprising. We're a little disappointed, but maybe the protester holding the EA sign is off camera:

1315 GMT: The LCCS posts this short video, reportedly showing protests in the Assaly neighborhood of Damascus. There are unconfirmed reports of a very large security presence in Damascus at the moment:

1309 GMT: The crowd in Gaza City after the release of Gilad Shalit:

1256 GMT: James Miller takes the wheel.

So far, the big Middle East story in the media, besides the release of Gilad Shalit in Gaza, is the arrival of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Tripoli, Libya. Clinton will announce a new aid package, will announce a plan that will provide medical care for former Qaddafi fighters, and will also work towards a plan to capture and account for thousands of shoulder-fired rockets, some of which are not accounted for. She is meeting with senior NTC officials, and is expected to appear on Libyan TV very soon.

1005 GMT: An AFP correspondent reports fierce street fighting between National Transitional Council fighters and Qaddafi loyalists in Sirte, the deposed leader's last stronghold.

There were at least 23 wounded NTC fighters within 15 minutes amidst heavy gunfire, rockets and mortars.

On Monday, the NTC force claimed the town of Bani Walid.

1000 GMT: More reports of deaths in the Yemeni capital Sana'a, with Suhail TV claiming four dead and 48 wounded from gunfire. Journalist Tom Finn reports, "Another day of death and despair in Yemen. 2 bloody corpses in the mosque, more being brought in."

0600 GMT: The International Trade Union Confederation has condemned the dismissal of Bahraini workers for "participation in legitimate trade union activity and/or for their political opinions", claiming almost 3000 have been fired.

The ITUC asserts:

The response by the government [has been] brutal. Several [workers] were killed, tortured and/or arrested, and numerous activists received lengthy prison sentences handed down by militarily tribunals. A government-sponsored national dialogue that took place earlier this year was never a serious attempt at reconciliation and has thus not resulted in meaningful reforms.

Today, the repression continues. Despite unsupported government claims, few workers and even fewer trade union leaders have been reinstated, and politically-motivated dismissals continue in the public sector. Just as the government has launched yet another PR offensive, this time to avoid debate on the establishment of a commission of inquiry at the International Labour Organization (ILO), the government unilaterally and without notice amended the trade union law in an effort to silence the independent and democratic voice of Bahraini workers, the General Federation of Bahraini Trade Unions.

0530 GMT: An evening march in Sanabis in Bahrain, before it was dispersed by police: "We will sacrifice our blood and souls to Bahrain":

The demonstration in Karbabad --- an EA source notes, "Surprisingly it ended peacefully, just as it started. No police showed up and attacked as uaual":

However, in Al Qarya, tear gas was used to scatter the marchers:

0510 GMT: Activists claimed on Monday that at least 25 more people had been killed in Homs, Syria's third-largest city, but beyond this, there was little information on a serious situation. Is the military conducting a "major military offensive", as Al Jazeera English summarised? How significant is the possibility of an armed clash between regime forces and defecting troops, with or without co-operation with the opposition?

One resident did get through on phone, "Most residents of [the] Bab Sbaa [neighbourhood] have fled. The troops are firing heavily from tanks and from the roadblocks in the area. The fire coming from the other direction is small and intermittent. Roadblocks have cut off every neighborhood from another, and random firing by troops manning them is common."

And then there was this intriguing paragraph from Reuters: "Loyalist forces encountered rudimentary resistance, although army deserters were helping some inhabitants defend their neighbourhoods and managed to hit several tanks with rocket-propelled grenades."

Even the news that emerged raised more questions. An activist report that seven Syrian troops had been slain by "gunmen" in Homs Province, with 17 more wounded and 20 fleeing, pointed to an ambush. But by whom --- beyond State media's repetition of the phrase "armed terrorist groups", have some in a resistance which has been peaceful since March turned to weapons?