Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Insurgents Change the Situation on the Ground

Friday's attack on protesters in Aleppo in Syria

See also Israel-Palestine Live Coverage: Air Assault on Gaza Expands --- Ground War Next?
Friday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: International Meeting in London Discusses Support for "New" Opposition

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2159 GMT: Syria.. he Local Coordination Committees report 120 people have been killed today, including 63 in Damascus and its suburbs.

2119 GMT: Syria The Local Coordiation Committee in Damascus, an opposition activist group, reports that of "several" injuries after 3 shells fell on Jalbout Building in Schools Street at the Palestinian refugee Yarmouk Camp in Damascus earlier today.

Claimed footage of the aftermath of the attack has been uploaded to YouTube by Ugrait news:

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: International Meeting in London Discusses Support for "New" Opposition

2240 GMT: Syria. The website for the FSA in AlBukamal still claims that despite the fact that 37 Assad soldiers defected today, the Hamdan airport (map) is still in Assad hands.

Still, the FSA made significant strides against it today. The FSA has demonstrated that it is stronger in the east than many analysts expected. If this base falls, it will be a major blow to the Assad military in the region.

2139 GMT: Syria. Al Jazeera reports on how civilian volunteers, using Italian ambulances, help save lives in the northern city of Aleppo:

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Syria Audio Analysis: Evaluating the New Opposition Coalition --- Scott Lucas with Monocle 24

I spoke with The Globalist this morning about yesterday's announcement of a "Syrian National Coalition" to lead the opposition, including the election of Damascus cleric Moaz al-Khatib as President with prominent dissident Riad Seif and Suhair al-Atassi, one of the few women prominent in the opposiiton, as deputies.

We discussed the manoeuvres that led to the Coalition, its aims, and the likelihood that it can achieve them. Take-away line: the opposition is hoping to establish a "provisional government" in northern Syria, with the backing of the international community for a protected zone --- but can the factions within the Coalition work together to reach that goal?

There is also discussion of the weekend's escalation in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, with Israel firing a "warning missile" after Syrian mortars hit the area.

The conversation starts at the 1:34.45 mark.

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: New Opposition Leadership Named --- Now What?

See also Syria Audio Analysis: Evaluating the New Opposition Coalition --- Scott Lucas with Monocle 24
Sunday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: New Opposition Coalition Formed "In Principle"

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2215 GMT: Syria. The Local Coordination Committees, who resigned from the Syrian National Council last week in protest, have released a statement that they support the new Syrian National Coalition, the new organization finalized in the last 24 hours:

This entity was established independently and outside the purview of any other nation. Moreover, the National Coalition was established in accordance with the principles and objectives of the Syrian revolution and activists’ demands to:

• Oust the regime (including its symbols and pillars of support);
• Dismantle the security services;
• Unify and support the military councils of the Free Syrian Army;
• Reject dialogue or negotiation with the criminal regime; and
• Hold accountable those responsible for killing Syrians, destroying our country, and displacing our people.

The National Coalition, in adhering to and fulfilling these requirements, will serve as the legitimate representative of the revolution and the Syrian people in their quest for freedom. In turn, the National Coalition, whose legitimacy as the sole representative of the Syrian people is also affirmed by the Arab and international community, can obtain the necessary support to protect civilians, oust the criminal regime, and reach the revolution’ highest goals to transition to a state of human rights, freedom, and citizenship.

The LCC reaffirms its participation in the National Coalition. The LCC has worked hard, and will continue to spare no effort, to ensure the success of the National Coalition in its service to the revolution. We congratulate the Syrian people, who have held steadfast in their efforts to accomplish this critical step in our revolution for dignity and in Syria’s history. The LCC affirms that it will always remain true to the objectives of our revolution for dignity, and will honor the hopes and sacrifices of our great Syrian people.

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Opposition Still Seeking Leadership

Claimed footage from insurgents of a captured regime airbase, including large missiles, near Damascus

See also Syria Audio Special: Regime's Leadership Defiant as Opposition's Disintegrates --- James Miller and Scott Lucas with Monocle 24

Syria Video and Transcript: President Assad's Interview with Russia Today
Thursday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: What Next for the Opposition?

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2124 GMT: Syria. Even as the Red Cross is ramping up efforts to help refugees and victims of the Syrian conflict, and even though aid is flowing in, the Red Cross is not able to keep pace with the growing humanitarian crisis:

"We can’t cope with the worsening of the situation," Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said at a briefing in Geneva.

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Syria Feature: Obama Administration Seeks a New Opposition Council (Rogin)

Opposition figure Riad SeifSyrian opposition leaders of all stripes will convene in Qatar next week to form a new leadership body to subsume the opposition Syrian National Council, which is widely viewed as ineffective, consumed by infighting, and little respected on the ground.

The State Department has been heavily involved in crafting the new council as part of its effort oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and build a more viable and unified opposition. In September, for instance, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with a group of Syrian activists who were flown in to New York for a high-level meeting that has not been reported until now.

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