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

An evening protest in Hama calls for the execution of President Assad

See also Egypt Video Feature: The Deaths at Maspero
Bahrain Video Diary, Part 1: The Freedom Torch Marches Across the Country
Sunday's Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: More Die as Embassies Are Stormed

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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:

2011 GMT: It's very rare that we have such glowing things to say about the actions of the US Congress, especially when it comes to technology, foreign policy, Arab Spring, or God forbid all three... so mark your calendars...

35 Senators have written a letter to the Secretary of State expressing concern about reports that US companies have supplied Syria with technology that is being used to spy on activists or censor the internet:

Democratic Senators Bob Casey and Chris Coons as well as Republican Senator Mark Kirk made the appeal in a letter, which was dated Friday, to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Commerce Secretary John Bryson.

US firms should not "provide tools of repression to murderous regimes," they said, citing news reports that Syria has been using technology from California-based NetApp, Inc. and Blue Coat Systems to track regime foes.

The lawmakers asked Clinton and Bryson to verify the reports, and determine whether the two firms violated a US ban on such exports to Syria and whether the know-how had helped Damascus in its bloody crackdown on protestors.

2003 GMT: A night protest in the very center of Homs, the old city:

1949 GMT: Even at this late hour the LCCS is reporting fresh casualties in Homs. According to the opposition group, Ahmad Mohamad Al-Hussein was killed by security in Hula, Homs, and two men were shot in the Al-Jandali neighborhood of Homs, one of whom is in critical condition.

1908 GMT: The video starts slow, but suddenly the sound of heavy gunfire can be heard. Activists are claiming that this video was taken this evening in Kisweh, a suburb south of Damascus (MAP):

1853 GMT: An activist posts a report that we had heard elsewhere, clashes north of Hama (MAP):

"Hama:Tibet Al-Imam:Renewed gunfire in the southern part of the city.There r reports of clashes btwn the regime's army and defectors"

1843 GMT: Now the LCCS gives us their latest update:

The LCC has just put out a statement saying that the number of reported deaths has leapt to 28, including two children.

Thirteen people died in Daraa, the activists said, where shelling in olive groves in eastern Horan killed four men and clashes between the Free Syrian Army and the security forces in Khirbet Ghazaleh resulted in "many" deaths.

1830 GMT: Now Lebanon provides this report:

Clashes between the Syrian army and defectors in the Daraa town of Al-Harak have left 10 dead, activists told Al-Arabiya television.

Earlier we reported that warplanes were in the area, and at least one activist has posted a rumor that the Syrian air forces has attacked ground targets, killing many, though both the activist and EA would like to stress that this is only rumor. Still, we don't like coincidences, and the reports of intense violence, and possible air strikes, and and around al Harak may be credible map of the area).

1745 GMT: A women's march in Yemen demands the trial of President Saleh and freezing of his assets:

1717 GMT: More details on defections in Daraa province, these from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights:

Dozens of people were wounded when security forces stormed into the town of Kherbet Ghazala in Daraa in order to end the ‘Civil Disobedience’ in the town. Afterwards, there were violent clashes between Syrian regular army and armed men who are suspected army defectors.

1711 GMT: Explosions of a different kind --- the people of Palmyra, Homs, celebrate the news that Syria has been expelled from the Arab League:

1642 GMT: This video reportedly shows the Syrian security forces opening fire on protests in Inkhel, Daraa, today. Casualties were reported earlier:

1637 GMT: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has an important update:

The bodies of 5 members of Syrian regular army, including the body of an officer, were found near a youth camp in the town of Al-Nayrab in Idlib.

Nayrab is between Saraqeb and Idlib city, where heavy clashes were reportedly earlier in the day (MAP).

1630 GMT: A 6 year old child, Safa Ibrahim Daboul, has reportedly been shot by snipers in the Idlib town of Ma'rrazita, southwest of Ma'arrat al Nouman (MAP).

1618 GMT: The LCCS is now also confirming clashes between defectors and the Syrian military in Alma (Elma), Daraa, and adds that there are also clashes in El Sourah, between Elma and al Harak. But they also add an ominous detail, that warplanes are now flying over nearby Mleha Al-Sharqiya (Mulayhah el Sharqiyah, see a map of the area).

1612 GMT: The death toll in Syria has reached at least 13, according to Foreign Policy Magazine:

LCCS: 13 killed in Syria today. 10 in Homs, 2 in Idlib and 1 in Daraa.

1602 GMT: Meanwhile, there are also large protests across Yemen today, as the opposition reconfirms its commitment to removing President Ali Abdullah Saleh from power. The Yemen Times is calling recent government actions, cutting water and electricity and arresting activists, the "last convulsions of a dying body," the last efforts to hold onto power. The report said that one of their activists, Mohammed Al-Radaee, was recently arrested because he was, among other things, trying to give water to the opponents of President Saleh.

In Ibb, the protesters pledged to block weapons from passing through their town to attack nearby Taiz:

And in Dhala, the protesters demand the trial of the president:

1557 GMT: Video, reportedly showing a large protest at funerals for those killed in the Bayada district of Homs, Syria. So far, it is unclear how many have been killed in Homs, but we've posted many dramatic videos of the shelling of the city below:

1554 GMT: The LCCS reports casualties in a city where student protests were reported earlier:

Lattakia: Al Gunaima: Martyrs and injured after a security force attack on the besieged village after cutting off the electricity and the water

1547 GMT: More video evidence backing up earlier eyewitness reports ---- this video reportedly shows a tank exploding in Alma, Daraa, where defectors have reportedly blown up 5 tanks. The video is very low quality (cell phone) but seems to show a tank on fire, its ordnance blowing up as the fire burns (see update at 1503 GMT):

1542 GMT: Activists post this video, reportedly showing the aftermath of the bombardment of the Bayada neighborhood of Homs. The amount of shrapnel (small holes in walls and objects) seems to confirm the reports by activists that fragmentation weapons are being used to inflict maximum casualties. At one point, there appears to be human remains in the corner of what used to be this building:

1537 GMT: We started the day with a report that a group of Bahraini activists reportedly "confessed" to officials that they were members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Iranian regime has now dismissed the report, and the lawyers for the men say that the prisoners have not confessed to anything.

1533 GMT: First, Syria was kicked out of the Arab League, but now Jordan's King Abdullah is the first Arab leader to officially say that President Bashar al Assad should step down:

"If Bashar (Assad) has the interest of his country, he would step down, but he would also create an ability to reach out and start a new phase of Syrian political life," Abdullah told the BBC in an interview.

1531 GMT: An activist provides some clarification about a video we posted at 1513 GMT:

activists film security forces on the streets, and the vans used to bus in loyalists for a pro-regime rally

1520 GMT: This video shows about 10 soldiers reportedly defecting in Homs today, but some activists are saying that they represent "mass defections." What "mass" means remains to be seen, especially as the city of Homs is being hit so hard today.

1513 GMT: While we don't have a translation right now, activists have posted this video, reportedly showing their reality in Idlib city today. The heavy security presence is obvious, but the protests carry on despite the martial law:

1508 GMT: Now we receive video evidence that there is fighting in Alma, Daraa, as gunfire and shelling can be heard while smoke rises in the background (see last update):

1503 GMT: A bold claim by the LCCS, that "tens" of soldiers have defected in Alma, Dara'a (MAP), destroying 5 tanks in the process. This would be a large, very well coordinated simultaneous defection if true.

1455 GMT: This video is reportedly taken today in Khanazir, Hama (MAP), where gunfire and shells tear into a "water tower and mosque." The tower does appear to be part of a mosque, as it seems to be broadcasting "Allahu Akbar" from its loudspeakers:

1444 GMT: Activists post this series of videos from Baba Amr, Homs, where homes are burning and gunfire rock the neighborhood. Many of the videos have the narrator saying the neighborhood and the date:

Tanks roll down the central boulevard in Baba Amr, shooting as they move:

A tank roars through the streets

Another angle, firing sounds like it is present in every corner of the district:

1434 GMT: Saraqeb, Idlib province (map) and the Baba Amr and Bab al Dreib neighborhoods of Homs (MAP) are under heavy bombardment, and snipers are deploying on rooftops in Jobar (southwest district of Homs), according to the Local Coordinating Committees of Syria, but the violence today is widespread.

Snipers have killed a man in Inkel, Daraa, a recent hotspot for a security crackdown against protests, and a graphic video of his body has been released:

Ameen Abdo Al Gothani shot and killed execution by the secuirty forces who are centered on the military checkpoint at the north of the city in front of his son( 9 years old) who has been taken to the hospital after getting injuried while the body of the martyr was [sniped] by the security forces

The LCCS also report that the Syrian regime has tortured and murdered an activist who turned himself in to police following Assad's announcement that he would grant amnesty to members of the opposition. Jamal Faisal Al-Marawi, a 25 year old father of 2, was a resident of Aleppo, and his body was found in Homs.

The LCCS also posts this GRAPHIC video, showing protesters reportedly killed in Dier Balba, Homs:

So there are three simultaneous stories that are leading to the rising death toll in Syria: protesters and civilians being shot, clashes between armed defectors and the military, and the systemic torture and execution of activists and prisoners. Welcome to another ugly week in Syria's Arab Spring.

1403 GMT: James Miller takes the blog.

Egyptian security forces have arrested 2 suspected members of a terrorist group linked to the bombing of an oil pipeline in the town of el-Arish, in northern Sinai. Yesterday, a leader of the group was also arrested. The group, Takfir wal Hijra, is inspired by al Qaeda, and is suspected in several attacks on both sides of the Sinai/Israel border. 16 others associated with the attacks were also arrested:

According to Palestine’s Ma’an News Agency, al-Teehi was accused of planning the deadly attacks in Israeli border city Eilat in August, as well as a number of attacks in the Egyptian peninsula.

However, Egyptian daily newspaper Youm7 did not mention any connection to the August attacks in their report of the arrest. Youm7 reported that al-Teehi was involved in attacking police facilities, bombing and killing soldiers in al-Arish.

Also, he was said to have attacked the central security headquarters at the Rafah border crossing and to have distributed flyers inciting violence against police forces.

Other Egyptian dailies reported likewise, that al-Teehi was detained for the numerous gas pipeline bombings, and did not mention the August attack on Eilat.

In the August 18 attack on Eilat, a number of Israeli vehicles near Eilat were bombed, and 8 Israelis were killed.

The attacks have been catalysts for other violence, as the Israeli military killed 16 Palestinians, and several Egyptian soldiers, in retaliatory attacks.

It's important to note that this news has little or nothing to do with Arab Spring. The terrorist campaign, and the mission to arrest members if al-Teehi, started before the uprising, and by all accounts the military mission was never disrupted by Egypt's political unrest.

1150 GMT: The European Union has announced further sanctions on the Assad regime in Syria, urging the United Nations to act to protect civilians.

Ministers agreed to blacklist a further 18 regime officials and to freeze loans offered to Damascus by the European Investment Bank.

1010 GMT: Footage of Sunday's demonstration in Casablanca in Morocco, calling for a boycott of elections:

1000 GMT: Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem, in a press conference, has denounced the Arab League decision to suspend Damascus as "serious", "unprecedented", and "extremely unprecedented". Portraying the move as a conspiracy, possibly with the US and France, he claims the decision was taken a month ago during a meeting of a "few Foreign Ministers", rather than by the Arab League.

Moallem said the invitation for Arab League officials to visit Syria is still open despite the conspiracy, and Damascus is still purusing reforms and dialogue.

Moallem also apologised for this weekend's attacks by regime supporters, following the League's decision, on embassies and consulates of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, France, and Turkey.

0940 GMT: Christian protesters demonstrate against the Assad regime in front of a church in Homs in Syria:

0910 GMT: Ahead of the 23 November release of the report by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry, activists have a bit of fun by putting out their leaked version:

We have found that at least 43 persons have died during the unrest while they were trying to have a republic. However, our findings clearly shows their death was due to suicide. Some of them have thrown themselves in front of police gunfire with the intention to cause damage and shake the stability of the country. The others have arrested themselves and have tortured themselves to death. Very sad.

An opposition rally in Karzakan last night:

0900 GMT: A senior Turkish official has said that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will probably announce sanctions against Syria during a visit to refugee camps along the border.

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu also met leaders of the Syrian opposition on Sunday evening. Turkey, whose embassy and consulates in Syria were attacked on Saturday after the Arab League's suspension of Damascus, also sent a plane to evacuate the families of it diplomats, issued a travel advisory against visiting the country, and demanded guarantees for the safety of its officials.

0550 GMT: In Saudi Arabia, a woman, Shaima Jastaniya, is to be lashed 10 times for driving a car. A court ordered the sentence implemented within the next 30 days.

Two reporters have been sued by the Saudi Ministry of Information for writing about the case.

0530 GMT: Another day of mass protests and death in Syria, notably in Hama where security forces fired on a demonstration. Activists said at least 26 people were slain, Damascus, with other deaths in Homs, in Daraa Province in the south, and Deir Ez Zor in the northeast.

An opposition group posts a Google Map filled with tags of the Sunday incidents.

Tal Rafaat in Aleppo Province:

Anadan in Aleppo Province:

0510 GMT: For more than two years, we have watched as Iranian official has paired the attempt to suppress dissent with the claims of foreign interference trying to topple the regime. So there was a clear, but ironic, echo on Sunday when the Bahraini monarchy tried the same approach.

In a statement on the five men arrested this weekend on charges of trying to sabotage infrastructure such as the Ministry of Interior, the Saudi Embassy, and the King Fahd Causeway, the 25-kilometres long terrestrial link between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, the public prosecutor's office declared that the suspects were working with Tehran's paramilitary and the Basij militia.

“Investigations have revealed that the cell plotting to carry out acts of terror in Bahrain coordinated with the Revolutionary Guards to train members on the use of weapons,” an official said in a press release. “They had contacts with Assad Qaseer.”

The statement added, "To achieve their goals, the culprits liaised with militant elements in the "Revolutionary Guard" and the 'Basige' in Iran in order to train elements who have joined the gang on the use of firearms and explosives in order to use them in implementing their plans."

We can find no record of an "Assad Qaseer" in the Revolutionary Guards or Basij.