LIVE SYRIA BLOG from AL JAZEERA 30DEZ11

THE best ending for 2011 would be the downfall of the assad government, ending the murder, imprisonment, repression and torture suffered by the people of Syria. The Arab League should be ashamed of the performance of it's monitors so far, but really, what could we expect when the monitors leader is guilty of crimes against humanity in Darfur? It just shows the Arab League is not looking for an end of government violence in Syria but seems to be searching for a way to keep assad in power and so prevent the people's demands for freedom, democracy and human rights from appearing in their countries. I am especially disappointed in the governments of Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Jordan and Qatar for their role in this fraud, it reminds me of the Red Cross visits to the concentration camps in Europe in WW II, after which the Red Cross stated the inmates of the camps were being treated humanely. Click the header or the links to go to Al Jazeera's Syria Live Blog for updates......

Demonstrators protest against Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Amuda [Reuters]

People continue to take to the streets across Syria despite the government's crackdown on dissidents. The UN says more than 5,000 people have been killed since the uprising began in March. Meanwhile, the government blames "armed gangs" for the unrest and says about 2,000 members of the security forces have been killed.
We bring you the latest news from various sources.
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1 hour 13 min ago - Syria

The UK-based Syrian Human Rights Observatory said more than half a million people turned out on Friday for the largest demonstrations in months.
Activists also reported that the death toll from clashes across Syria today have risen to 32.

Tags Bashar al Assad, protest, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights

2 hours 50 min ago - Syria

Omar Hamza, a witness to the clashes between security forces and demonstrators in the Damascus suburb of Douma on Friday, said government forces shot at protesters who gathered at a mosque in the city.

More than 100 people are injured right now," he told Al Jazeera. "It is a very bad situation in Douma today."

Tags Arab League, Bashar al Assad, violence

2 hours 56 min ago - Syria

Al Jazeera's Dorsa Jabbari, reporting from Beirut in neighbouring Lebanon, said demonstrations were taking place in 18 different provinces across Syria.
"One of the biggest demonstrations is near the capital, Damascus. Activists have called on all residents to try and reach the centre of their cities. In Damascus ... they are being met by security forces who have used tear gas, according to many of the residents nearby," she said.
"We know that large demonstrations are also under way in the city of Hama, [in] Homs, as well as [in] Idlib, where we've seen images of observers themselves along with the demonstrators in the midst of it all."

Tags Arab League, Bashar al Assad

4 hours 24 min ago - Syria

At least 17 people have been reported killed during fresh protests against the Syrian government, as hundreds of thousands of demonstrators flooded streets across the country.
Activists said the deaths came on Friday as protesters, emboldened by the presence of Arab League observers in the country, took to the streets after noon Muslim prayers.

Tags Bashar al Assad, violence

5 hours 5 min ago - Syria

Amoda protest on Friday

Tags Amoda

5 hours 8 min ago - Syria

Kaferoma protest today banner:  "Kaferoma will not knee down to any but God"

Tags Kaferoma

11 hours 34 min ago - Syria

The Syrian opposition on Thursday criticized the government for failing to support the on-going Arab League (AL) observer mission in the country.

Louay Hussein, leader of the Syrian opposition Building the Syrian State Movement, said in a statement on Thursday that the government' s non-cooperative manner has prevented the media from free reporting on the Syrian situation. According to the agreement with the AL mission, the media enjoys free access across Syria.

"The government failed to abide by this rule. Therefore, I criticized in my statement that the authorities had violated terms listed in the agreement," said Louay Hussein.

Tags Arab League, damascus, Louay Hussein

11 hours 55 min ago - Syria

Syrian activists are calling for more protests across the country on Friday. They say they want Arab League monitors to take action to end the violence.

At least 38 people were killed by security forces on Thursday.

Al Jazeera's Nick Toksvig reports.

Tags damascus, Douma

12 hours 32 min ago - Syria

This Youtube video appears to show thousands of people in Homs, Syria, at a mass rally. The leader of the rally leads them in giving a pledge to God. Al Jazeera cannot verify the authenticity of Youtube videos. 

Tags homs, protest, syria citizen video

13 hours 4 min ago - Syria

Opposition activists urged people to take to the streets on Friday to convince Arab League peace monitors to pay attention to their plight.
The Arab League mission to verify whether President Bashar al-Assad is keeping to a pledge to end the crackdown on a nine-month pro-democracy uprising has so far failed to bring a reduction in violence.
Government security forces shot dead 25 people on Thursday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. They opened fire on protests in cities around the country, also wounding about 100 people. [Reuters]