Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Decimating Homs

The shelling and smoke in Bab Amr in Homs this morning

See also Syria Video Feature: How Can You Get News Out of the Country?
Syria Video Special: The Shelling of Homs, Days 5 and 6
Wednesday's Bahrain, Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Shutting Out the Journalists

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2110 GMT: Mazhar Tayyara, a freelance journalist working for several major European news agencies has been killed during the military attack on Homs, Syria:

Tayyara was a freelance journalist who was hired as a stringer for the Agence France-Presse and also who provided video footage for The Guardian and the Die Wilt in Germany.

Apparently Tayyara was trying to help some wounded people get to cover when a second volley of shells fell and he was hit by shrapnel in several parts of his body. He died several hours later in hospital.

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Syria Video Special: The Shelling of Homs, Days 5 and 6

A call for help from Sheikh Ra'ed Al-Juri in Baba Amr in Homs, asking when the killing will stop

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Just weeks ago, the Syrian regime was losing territory at an alarming rate to the insurgents of the Free Syrian Army. Last Friday, the FSA captured some key checkpoints and many pro-Assad soldiers.

Five days later, after a ruthless bombardment by regime forces, several hundreds are dead.

The military assault is designed to send messages. To the citizens of Syria, they are being warned that their support of the opposition and the Free Syrian Army is not acceptable and will be punished with extreme prejudice. To the insurgents, the message is simple is that you cannot win, for you are alone. To the members of the Syrian military, the message is defect, and this is the fate you will meet.

The question is, who is listening? The protests, even in Homs, continued on Wednesday. There were yet more reports of defections, particularly in Idlib Province in the northwest. Despite the onslaught, there is defiance is the voices of many, people who no longer believe they have any choice but to fight. For in this Syria, innocent bystanders can just as easily be killed by artillery shells as members of the armed resistance.

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Syria Video Feature: How Can You Get News Out of the Country? (Al Jazeera English)

On Saturday, EA's James Miller will appear on Al Jazeera English's Listening Post, discussing the task of obtaining and assessing reliable video of events in the Syrian conflict.

In the meantime, we feature the latest episode of Listening Post, detailing the difficulties for journalists inside the country.

Bahrain, Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Shutting Out the Journalists

2203 GMT: Because the LCCS employees a strict verification system before it certifies a death in Syria, it appears that they are overwhelmed. Many sources say that in Homs and Zabadani, but particularly in Homs, it is nearly impossible to confirm the amount of dead and injured, because of the sheer number, and because of the ongoing violence. However, the Syrian General Revolutionary Council is reporting that at least 117 were killed nationwide on Wednesday, 93 of those deaths were in Homs, and 52 of those deaths were in the Baba Amr district alone.

2116 GMT: The LCCS reports large demonstrations in "the heart of Damascus" this evening. The Coalition of Free Damascenes for Peaceful Change has told a similar story, and has posted several videos of protests in and around Damascus. We have also discovered this video, uploaded by one of the most trusted opposition news networks, that reportedly shows a protest this evening in the Abu Habl district of Midan, near the center of Damascus. It is, according to activist SeekerSK, a primarily commercial area.

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Israel Analysis: Benjamin Netanyahu's Best Political Friend --- Iran

What is distinctive about Netanyahu's invocation of the “Iranian threat” now?

This is not just a tactical manoeuvre against Kadima, the rival to Netayahu's party Likud, ahead of elections. It is also the device to bypass serious and difficult negotiations, especially on the "peace process" with the Palestinians.

And with recent developments, Benjamin Netanyahu might need "strength" and Iran more than ever.

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Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: The Regime's Offensive

2126 GMT: Turning to Bahrain, a woman who was arrested for listening to a revolutionary song in her car has been released, and was greeted by a large crowd upon getting out of prison:

Fadhila al-Mubarak was detained during martial law last year at a checkpoint for listening to a tape praising a pro-democracy protest movement that erupted in February after uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia, Said Yousef al-Muhafda said.

Mubarak was sentenced to four years in jail for taking part in the Pearl Roundabout protests, inciting hatred of the government and insulting a public official, Muhafda said. The sentence was later reduced to 18 months and must still be appealed.

2025 GMT: This video, according to the Syrian Uprising 2011 Information Centre, was taken today, and shows the Assad military bombarding Zabadani (see updates below):

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Syria Live Video: Bab Amro in Homs Today

Live video from Bab Amro in Homs, on the fifth day of the regime's shelling:

Bahrain, Egypt, Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: 1000s Gather for The Sit-In

The Meqsha Sit-In in Bahrain last night

See also Syria Live Video: The Shelling of Bab Amro in Homs
MENA Feature: Made in China --- The Arab Spring's Mobile Technology
Sunday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: The Security Council Vetoes --- What's Next?

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2208 GMT: We already reported that the US has closed its embassy in Syria, so we ignored the report that the US had issued a new travel warning on Syria. But we missed an interesting detail -

The Department of State urges those U.S. citizens who decide to remain in Syria despite this Travel Warning to enroll their stay in Syria through the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) at www.travel.state.gov, and provide their current contact information and next-of-kin information.

Next-of-kin information? It is possibly part of a scare strategy, but it would also seem that the US State Department is expecting more escalation in violence, particularly in Damascus.

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Syria Live Video: The Shelling of Bab Amro in Homs

Bab Amro, a neighbourhood in Homs, has been the site of both protest and violence for months, as regime forces tried to suppress the growing uprising. In recent days, however, there has been a renewed assault by the Syrian military, as hundreds have perished in Homs.

Sights and sounds from Bab Amro today:

Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: The Security Council Vetoes --- What's Next?

Protesters in Aleppo burn the Russian flag on Saturday night

See also Bahrain Special: Who Exactly is Ill-Informed? And How Did That Happen?
Bahrain Feature: Problems for the Financial Sector?
Saturday's Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Hundreds Dead in Homs as Regime Strikes

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2250 GMT: A demonstration tonight in the Dummar section of the Syrian capital Damascus:

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