Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Assad Remains Defiant

2232 GMT: Syria. Brigadier General Salim Idris talks to Al Jazeera English, saying that his forces need more ammunition and weapons to fight Assad. Idris also says that special rebel units are working to protect and monitor chemical stockpiles.

2149 GMT: Bahrain British Foreign Office Minister Alistair Burt has criticised the Court of Cassation's decision to uphold the sentences against the 13 leading Bahrain activists and politicians. In a statement, Burt said:

At the time these individuals were sentenced, reports which were acknowledged by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry suggested that some had been abused in detention, denied access to legal counsel and were coerced into confessing.

I call on the government of Bahrain to meet all its human rights obligations and guarantee its citizens the fundamental liberties to which they are entitled.

I am deeply dismayed at the decision.

2006 GMT: Libya. In order to establish law and order and find a place for many former soldiers, over 6000 militiamen have been trained to be police, according to the new Interior Minister Ashour Shuail:

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Israel Feature: "The Most Hated Woman in the Country?" --- Member of Knesset Hanin Zoabi

Zoabi shrugs off the incident with the right-wingers in the court building. She is not afraid of them, she insists, and even chuckled when she noticed that I was shaken at the time. “I can triumph over the right-wingers who attacked us in the Supreme Court. I am a democrat and I have values, and they are a rabble.”

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Syria Live Coverage: "220 Executed" as Regime Advances in Homs

Rally in Deir Baalba in Syria, November 2011

See also 2012 in Review: How Did EA's Predictions Turn Out?
Egypt Feature: Not All "Islamist" Movements Are the Same....
Iraq Video: Evaluating the Surge in Anti-Government Protests
Saturday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: UN Envoy Brahimi's Mission is "Dead in the Water"

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1735 GMT: Syria. Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan has told thousands of Syrian refugees that their country is preparing for a "sacred birth" replacing President Assad with the will of the people: "We can see very clearly that God's help is close. Don't forget victory comes to those who are patient."

Erdogan stood next to Moaz Al-Khatib, the head of the Syrian opposition National Coalition.

Refugee camps in Turkey host 150,000 Syrians who have fled the conflict.

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: 156 Killed as UN Envoy Brahimi Meets Assad

See also Israel-Palestine Feature: Jerusalem's "Extreme Makeover" & "Perilous Decline"
Syria 1st-Hand: Attempting to Live a Normal Life in Insurgent-Held Yabroud
Monday's Syria Live Coverage: "94 Killed" in Regime Airstrike on Bakery Queue

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2100 GMT: Egypt. The US State Department has reacted to today's official declaration of the approval of the Constitution:

The future of Egypt’s democracy depends on forging a broader consensus behind its new democratic rules and institutions. Many Egyptians have voiced deep concerns about the substance of the constitution and the constitutional process. President Morsi, as the democratically elected leader of Egypt, has a special responsibility to move forward in a way that recognizes the urgent need to bridge divisions, build trust, and broaden support for the political process. We have called for genuine consultation and compromise across Egypt’s political divides. We hope those Egyptians disappointed by the result will seek more and deeper engagement. We look to those who welcome the result to engage in good faith. And we hope all sides will re-commit themselves to condemn and prevent violence.

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Israel-Palestine Feature: Jerusalem's "Extreme Makeover" & "Perilous Decline" (International Crisis Group)

The announcement of significant new Israeli settlement construction in East Jerusalem has put the spotlight on the city, but the changes it has undergone since 2000, when the parties first negotiated its fate, are far broader and have far deeper roots.  Israelis, Palestinians and the international community must adjust their strategies accordingly, or Arab East Jerusalem will continue its perilous decline, with catastrophic consequences for all.

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Israel, Palestine (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Netanyahu Dismisses Criticism of Settlements

See also Kuwait Analysis: Has the Emir Halted the Protests?
Syria Live Coverage: "The Land Where Assad Killed Santa Claus"
Friday's Iraq (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Security Forces Raid Minister of Finance's Home and Offices

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1945 GMT: Israel-Palestine. Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas has threatened to disband the Authority, handing full control of the West Bank back to Israel, if West Jersualem does not halt its expansion of settlements: "We will not be guards of Israel's security and will never be a tool at Israel's hand to implement its plans on the Palestinian territories."

Abbas told his Fatah Party's Advisory Council that Israel's construction in the E-1 zone on Palestinian territory is "a red line and we will never allow it to happen", as it aims to "sabotage the peace process".

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Iraq (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Security Forces Raid Minister of Finance's Home and Offices

See also Sudan Feature: Explaining Last Month's Coup Attempt...And What's Next
Libya Feature: Optimism Gives Way to Jitters in Benghazi
Syria Live Coverage: Russia Gives Up on Assad
Thursday's Israel, Palestine (and Beyond) Live Coverage: UN Criticises West Jerusalem's Settlement Expansion

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1439 GMT: Yemen. Thousands of marchers rally on Thursday to support the Government's restructuring of armed forces, which included the abolition of the Republican Guards, commanded by the son of former President Saleh:

1307 GMT: Egypt. Clashes erupted shortly after thousands of demonstrators gathered at Alexandria's Qaed Ibrahim Mosque to "defend [Islamic] scholars and mosques," and to call for Sharia law.

The rally after Friday noon prayers was initially peaceful, but reports indicate opposition protesters picked a fight with Islamist demonstrators.

Central Security Forces fired tear gas into the crowd, forcing people onto the Corniche near the mosque.

Injuries are reported.

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Iran Propaganda 101: Mass Killing of Children in Connecticut --- The Jews Did It

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If there is a conspiracy of significance here, it is not in the Jews massacring American schoolchildren. It is in how Iranian State media, to put out its English-language version of the world, managed to forge an alliance with a group of anti-Semitic US fantasists.

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Israel, Palestine (and Beyond) Live Coverage: UN Criticises West Jerusalem's Settlement Expansion

See also Syria Live Coverage: The Humanitarian Crisis
Wednesday's Israel, Palestine (and Beyond) Live Coverage: US Criticises Israeli "Pattern of Provocation" Over Settlements

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2123 GMT: Mali. The United Nations Security Council has unanimously authorised an African-led military force to try and oust Islamist insurgents from northern Mali.

The Council gave the force an initial one-year mandate to use "all necessary measures" to help Mali recover the north of the country from "terrorist, extremist. and armed groups". The resolution authorises the European Union and other UN member states to help rebuild Malian security forces.

Insurgents took control of northern Mali after a military coup in March and established Islamic law.

The Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) says it has 3,300 troops ready to deploy, although an operation is not expected to begin before September 2013.

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Israel, Palestine (and Beyond) Live Coverage: US Criticises Israeli "Pattern of Provocation" Over Settlements

See also Bahrain Analysis: Does Al Wefaq Still Lead the Opposition to the Regime?
Syria Live Coverage: The Insurgents Close on Hama
Tuesday's Bahrain (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Protests and Arrests for "Martyrs Day" in Manama

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2125 GMT: UAE. Authorities have arrested at least four people after a tightening of the Internet law.

The four men, including former diplomat Naji al-Nuaimi, had sympathised with more than 60 Islamists detained since March, had called for reforms, or had criticised the security forces on-line, activists said.

2025 GMT: Yemen. President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi has abolished two major military units, including one commanded by the son of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

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"The army was restructured into four units, the land forces, the navy, the air force and the border forces," State television reported, as the Republican Guard and the First Armored Division were abolished.

Brigadier General Ahmed Saleh, the commander of the Republican Guard, had refused orders this to hand over long-range missiles to the Defense Ministry.

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