Egypt, Syria, Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: An Activist is Freed

Egyptian activist Alaa Abd-El Fattah joins chants in Tahrir Square after he was freed on Sunday

See also Yemen and Media Opinion: Does a Life March Take Place If No One Covers It?
Sudan Special: A New Spark for 2011's Forgotten Revolution?

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2140 GMT: The Local Coordination Committees claim that 40 people --- 33 of them in Homs --- have been killed by Syrian security forces today.

A rally tonight in Houla in Homs Province in sympathy with the shelled Bab Amro section of Homs:

A protest in the Damascus suburb of Saqba calling for freedom and the toppling of the regime:

And the suburb of Barzeh:

Dael in Daraa Province in the south:

According to the activists, there were two deaths in Idlib, 1 in Daraa, and 4 in Hama.

1655 GMT: A cross-section of images from Syria today --- shelling in the Bab Amro section of Homs:

An anti-regime rally in the Deir Baalba district of Homs in solidarity with the shelled Bab Amro section:

A women's demonstration in the Damascus suburb of Kisweh:

A rally in Tilamanas in Idlib Province in the northwest:

1645 GMT: Several thousand people protested in Morocco on Sunday, pressing for greater political reforms.

It was the first demonstrations by the February 20 pro-democracy movement without the Islamist Justice and Charity group, which withdrew earlier this month, claiming it had been the object of "attacks" from youths within the movement. Some Justice and Charity members have called for a transformation of Morocco to a full-fledged republic rather than a parliamentary monarchy.

Up to 5,000 people demonstrated in Casablanca's poor Hay Mohammadi suburb. About 300 to 500 marched in Rabat, while police said about 3,500 people in total protested countrywide.

1630 GMT: In Bahrain, many of the Shiite doctors who are out of prison while awaiting retrial have started to tell their stories to the press:

"I can't talk," sobbed consultant paediatrician Nader Dawani, recounting how he was forced to stand up for seven days, while being beaten repeatedly, mainly by a female officer.

"She was the harshest. She used to hit me with a hose and wooden canes, many of which broke on my back," said the frail 54-year-old man.

"They attempted to insert a bottle in my anus," he recounted.

Meanwhile, an EA correspondent in Bahrain sends us this report:

Youth from the Village Bori decided to celebrate Christmas this year, by placing a Christmas tree in the village center. But the tree decoration was done by police leftovers, [casings from] teargas & rubble bullets, sending a message to the regime and the world about how much this village has suffered on a daily basis due to the extensive use of ammunition:

1618 GMT: A bloody video reportedly shows a field hospital in Baba Amr, Homs. Though hard to watch, it gives a strong impression of the extent of the crisis in the city.

1545 GMT: Yet another video from yet another area of Homs. This intense video was reportedly taken in Bab al Dreib, Homs, today:

Another video reportedly shows 8 Land-Rovers, each carrying 5 or 6 soldiers, moving through the Baba Amr district. It is unclear exactly when the video was taken, though it claims to have been taken today. It is also unclear whether the soldiers are moving into the city or out of it.

1534 GMT: This video was reportedly taken on the Qahira street street that separates the Bayada district from the Khalidiya district in Homs (Map):

1527 GMT: Two videos, reportedly taken in Baba Amr, Homs, give an idea of the intensity of the attack, and the fear of the residents. In the first, gunfire intensifies as the cameraman panics. In the second, the cameraman becomes the target for tank shells:

However, the Khalidiya district, on the other side of the city, is also under attack, according to eyewitnesses (MAP):

1518 GMT: Another disturbing video claims to show an entire family (though there appear to be even more bodies than that) killed in Baba Amr, Homs, today.

1501 GMT: Meanwhile, yesterday Omar Hawi was reportedly beaten to death during a protest in the Salah el Deen district of Aleppo, near the center of the city. Why is this significant? Well, this video, reportedly taken at his funeral today, and it speaks for itself:

In other cities, events such as this were catalysts for larger protests, which led to a harsher response from the regime, which in turn led to more protests, and often more death.

1451 GMT: James Miller takes the liveblog among a swirl of confusion in Syria. Activist Alexander Page, citing al-Arabiya, first tweeted this:

BREAKING: #arableague observer Mustashar Mahjoub was shot by regime forces in #arbeen of #Damascus wounded he said "this is genocide"

This, certainly, would have been huge news. However, Page, and others, soon noted that the claim was in dispute. Syrian National Bloc member Shakeeb Al-Jabri sums up the situation succinctly:

An unnamed monitor spoke live with AlArabiya and confirmed he was injured. #Syria... AlJazeera reported that AL sources confirm no monitors were injured in #Syria

Syrian activists trust neither the Arab League nor AlArabiya, hence we don't know which is lying

Meanwhile, reports of violence in Homs continue to pour in, and France has called for the Arab League observers to head to the embattled city immediately to stop further bloodshed.

It's going to be a busy day in Syria.

1025 GMT: Activists are reporting heavy shelling this morning of the Bab Amro section of Homs in Syria, with at least 18 people killed. Minarets are defiantly putting out the message, "Allah Akbar (God is Great)".

Video, too graphic for us to show here, has been posted of bodies lined up on the street.

Claimed footage of tanks in Bab Amro:

0925 GMT: In his first statement since release from detention yesterday (see 0515 GMT), Egyptian activist Alaa Abd-El Fattah has called for the impeachment of the ruling "military junta" and has held it responsible for violence, including the deaths of at least 26 protesters on 9 October in Cairo.

Abd-El Fattah was imprisoned from 30 October over the incident.

0845 GMT: Noting the Bahraini regime's propaganda push this morning (see 0815 GMT), we would be negligent if we did not note this claim:

[Police] officers also revealed that some violent protesters they had arrested were found to be under the influence of drugs.

"They do not know what they are doing and where they are," said one.

"They are often bleary-eyed and completely disoriented.

"It is only after some time that they become normal."

Policemen claimed these youths were being "led" by people not at the forefront of protests, but who were known to administer them drugs and tell them to attack police.

Former Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi made similar claims about those who challenged and eventually overthrew him this year.

0835 GMT: An hour after we post an opinion by Josh Shahryar on media coverage (or lack of it) of Yemen, notably last week's "Life March", a telling example from the BBC:

Thousands of Yemenis have taken to the streets of Sanaa, to protest against the killing of demonstrators and demand their country's acting leader resign.

As they marched past the office of Vice-President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, the protesters called him a "tool" of outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Mr Hadi earlier called for calm, a day after nine protesters in Taiz were killed by forces loyal to Mr Saleh.

They had been demanding that Mr Saleh's immunity from prosecution be revoked.

The BBC inadvertently makes Shahryar's point on mainstream media --- in this brief item, it mentions deaths in Taiz in Saturday. However, it never notes the deaths in Sana'a when security forces opened fire soon after the arrival of the Life March, the 264-kilometre walk by thousands of Yemenis from Taiz to the capital.

0830 GMT: At a Sunday press conference, Egyptian doctors claimed that there has been systematic targeting of physicians at field hospitals in Tahrir Square during clashes between the military and protesters in the last two months.

The doctors said at least one colleague, Alaa Abd El-Hady, was shot dead, another kidnapped, several arrested and tortured, and many injured.

0815 GMT: Dismissed workers in Bahrain are calling for a march on Tuesday to the Ministry of Labour, "We Will Be Back with Dignity":

Meanwhile, regime media make a big push today with features on the threat faced by police amidst the violent and devious opposition. The Gulf Daily News features "Day in the Life of a Police Patrol":

The action started near the Abu Saiba Primary School, where youths, men and women began throwing stones at police - who initially did not retaliate, choosing to fend off the attacks with riot shields.

It was only after sticks and then steel rods were hurled that they responded with a few tear gas shells to disperse the crowd.

However, police then came under attack from six-inch steel nails fired at them from homemade "guns", made from hand-held compression devices.

It was then that the tear gassing started in earnest before ending as abruptly as it started.

The newspaper also pushes the line, "Police officers who routinely come face to face with masked gangs believe they are selling video footage of the violence to foreign television channels":

One policeman described how every group of stone-throwing youths was always accompanied by at last two cameramen carrying expensive equipment.

"They do their best to provoke us and once we react, their cameramen film the entire thing," said an officer on patrol in Abu Saiba.

"These clips are then sold to television channels for a considerable sum of money."

0805 GMT: A car bomb has exploded at a checkpoint leading to the Iraqi Interior Ministry in Baghdad, killing seven people and injuring 32 others.

The suicide bomber struck during morning rush hour. Five policemen are among the dead.

The attack follows at least 12 bombings last week that killed up to 70 people in a single day.

0655 GMT: Opposition activists put out a video juxtaposing National Day eulogies to the King on Bahraini State TV with scenes of the violence and protests in the country this month.

0535 GMT: After the worries on Saturday that the Syrian military was about to overrun the Bab Amro section on Homs, following heavy shelling, fewer reports on violence on Sunday. Large anti-regime rallies continued, including this gathering in the Damascus suburb of Douma last night:

Syrian military on the streets of the Damascus suburb of Moadamiyah:

0515 GMT: Prominent Egyptian blogger and activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah has been freed from detention after almost two months.

Abd-El Fattah was imprisoned on 30 October. The main charge was that he incited violence during an attack by regime supporters and the military on protesters, largely Coptic Christians, near the State TV building in Cairo on 9 October. At least 26 people died in the incident, with more than 300 injured. 

Abd-El Fattah's sister Mona Seif, also a leading figure in the challenge to military rule, announced on Twitter late Sunday morning, “Alaa is released."

Abd-El Fattah was jailed when he refused to be interrogated by military prosecutors, quiestioning their legitimacy. Earlier this month, the court of appeals released the other 27 defendants in the case.

During his imprisonment, based on renewed orders for 15-day detention,  Abd El-Fattah wrote several letters reflecting on prison and activism. One of those letters was about his first meeting with his son Khaled, who was born while Abd-El Fattah was behind bars.