Live Blog: Friday protests across Middle East

Live Blog: Friday protests across Middle East

As the unrest  in the Middle East continues, we update you with the latest developments from Syria, Yemen and across the region.

Read on for the latest from our correspondents, news agencies and citizens across the globe.

Al Jazeera is not responsible for content derived from external sites.

Region in turmoil - Syria Unrest - Yemen's Uprising - Battle for Libya - Egypt's Revolution - Bahrain Protests

(All times are in GMT)

• Timestamp: 

  11:44pm

  As the Middle East goes to sleep, we close down our live blog for this Friday, April 8th. Thanks for tuning in, folks.

• Timestamp: 

  9:44pm

  YEMEN - Online activist group Avaaz have collated footage put online from Taiz and Sanaa, which you can see on their page by clicking here.

• Timestamp: 

  9:17pm

  SYRIA - In a statement read out on state TV (and repeated three times), the government says:

  Over the past Fridays there were a lot of demonstrations in which armed groups used weapons to kill people and security forces - and though we understand that protesting is a right of the population, we can no longer allow chaos to take place and official buildings to be destroyed. So we will use all the means to stop the chaos from taking place.

  Note - the above is a rough translation only.

• Timestamp: 

  9:06pm

  SYRIA - Al Jazeera's Cal Perry tells us that people in Daraa are afraid of going to hospitals in case they are kidnapped by secret police. With a large military contingent on its way to Daraa, it is likely the town will be surrounded by tomorrow morning, he says.

• Timestamp: 

  8:47pm

  SYRIA - The state TV building in Deraa has been burned down, tweets Al Jazeera's Cal Perry.

• Timestamp: 

  8:44pm

  SYRIA - Al Jazeera's Cal Perry, reporting from Damascus, tweets:

  Sources confirm to #AJE that the Army has been deployed in large numbers to the Southern City of #Deraa. #Syria

  You can follow Cal, too: @calperryAJ

• Timestamp: 

  8:17pm

  EGYPT - The Muslim Brotherhood has steered clear of recent demonstrations in Cairo's Tahrir Square, but joined protesters on Friday, calling for the prosecution of former president Hosni Mubarak.
  
  Islam Lotfy, who represents the brotherhood and the Youth Coalition, speaks to Al Jazeera from Cairo and explains why his organisation joined today's gathering. 

• Timestamp: 

  7:45pm

  EGYPT - Al Jazeera's Adam Makary (@adamakary) tweets:

  The number of army officers joining protesters in #tahrir is growing, they r calling for a sit-in, insisting ppl 2 camp the night with them

• Timestamp: 

  7:37pm

  SYRIA - More footage of today’s protest in Latakia. The description of this video says: "To all those who question the demands of the Syrian people – A clear message to overthrow the regime"
  

• Timestamp: 

  7:25pm

  EGYPT - Thousands gathered today in Tahrir Square, central Cairo, showing a unity unseen since the ousting of former president Hosni Mubarak, to demand the country's new military rulers take action against its former leaders.
  
  Threatening to march to Sharm el-Sheikh, where Mubarak is reportedly holed up, even a small group of soldiers joined the protest - risking courts martial.
  
  Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna has more from Cairo.

• Timestamp: 

  7:12pm

  SYRIA - More amateur video uploaded to YouTube purportedly shows wounded protesters being treated in the local Omari mosque in Daraa:
   

• Timestamp: 

  6:20pm

  YEMEN - Our special correspondent tells us that government officials may be attempting to backtrack on some of President Saleh's defiant remarks this afternoon. 

  The state news agency is quoting an "informed source" saying Saleh was rejecting "Qatar's meddling in Yemeni affairs" - but still welcomes the efforts of the Gulf countries to find a solution to the crisis. The Saba news agency said:

  [The] president welcomed the good efforts of the Gulf countries, particularly the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in order to solve the crisis between the Yemeni parties, the source said - adding that president rejects what was mentioned in a statement by Qatar's Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, Hamad bin Jasim Al Thani and regarded it as intervention in the Yemeni domestic affairs which is unacceptable.

• Timestamp: 

  5:54pm

  EGYPT - Al Jazeera's Adam Makary says thousands of protesters have left Cairo's Tahrir Square following nightfall - and headed to the Israeli embassy.

  They are demanding the flag be taken down and the gas supply from Egypt to Israel to be blocked.

• Timestamp: 

  5:52pm

  SYRIA - The death toll among pro-reform demonstrators in Daraa has climbed to 27, a source told Al Jazeera. Twenty bodies are at the morgue, seven others were released to their families. Four people are still unaccounted for.

• Timestamp: 

  5:46pm

  YEMEN - Our special correspondent tells us that violence is continuing outside the governor's office in the southern city of Taiz. Police are shooting tear gas and using live ammunition.

  She has just confirmed two people have been killed, and 30 are in a critical condition.

  A further 100 people have been shot with live ammunition, medical sources tell her, with 1,000 people suffering the results of tear gas inhalation.

• Timestamp: 

  5:45pm

  SYRIA - State-run Syrian television says 19 police officers and members of the security forces have been killed in Daraa. Witnesses in the southern border town earlier said there were 17 people killed there - all of them anti-government protesters. The discrepancy could not immediately be reconciled.

  Daraa was the site of a mass demonstration today by thousands of anti-government protesters. Witnesses and human rights groups said security forces opened fire to disperse the gathering. A nurse at the city's hospital said hundreds of wounded had overwhelmed the facility.

• Timestamp: 

  5:33pm

  SYRIA - The latest on the nation-wide protests from Al Jazeera's Gerald Tan:
  

• Timestamp: 

  5:10pm

  YEMEN - The country's longtime leader, Ali Abdullah Saleh, addressed a crowd of thousands in capital Sanaa, defiantly rejecting international calls for him to step down.
  
  But on the other side of the city, a second demonstration called for his immediate resignation. One man there told our correspondent he had been offered money to attend the pro-Saleh demonstration, but wanted to protest.
  
  Al Jazeera's special correspondent, who is not being named for security reasons, has more from Sanaa.

• Timestamp: 

  4:36pm

  EGYPT - Al Jazeera's Adam Makary (@adamakary) tweets:

  The sun sets over #tahrir and still thousands of people protesting #april8 #jan25 #egyptrocks

  

• Timestamp: 

  4:15pm

  IRAQ - More details on the 25 deaths in the crackdown on the MEK - an Iranian opposition group sheltered by Saddam Hussein which has refused to disband. Al Jazeera's Jane Arraf, reporting from Baghdad, speaks to Adrian Fineghan in our Doha newsroom.

• Timestamp: 

  4:09pm

  SYRIA - State television aired footage of several masked gunmen who could be seen shooting in what it said was the city of Daraa. The news anchor said the gunmen were firing at protesters and police:

  A peaceful demonstration which vandals infiltrated  ... attacked the electricity company and started shooting and opened fire on the television (station). Some of the gunmen were firing live bullets on protesters and security forces. This expresses clearly and openly that there are some people who wish evil on Syria.

  The Syrian government has blamed killings during weeks of pro-democracy protests on armed groups shooting at random, while protesters say they have been targeted by security forces.

• Timestamp: 

  3:52pm

  EGYPT - Al Jazeera's Adam Makary tweets:

  More walking space in #tahrir then there has been over the past six hours and some banners are being removed

  You can follow him for yourself @adamakary

• Timestamp: 

  3:22pm

  SYRIA - More footage emerges of the protests that erupted after prayer today. This video shows a scene in Homs where demonstrators were dispersed with heavy gunfire, water cannons and teargas:

  
  

• Timestamp: 

  3:12pm

  IRAQ - At least 25 killed and 320 wounded in clashes between Iraqi troops and members of an Iranian opposition group, the MEK, given shelter by Saddam Hussein. Protests against ongoing US military presence continue in Baghdad.

• Timestamp: 

  3:12pm

  SYRIA - The death toll in Daraa rose to 17, a hospital source and an activist said, after residents reported security forces opened fire on thousands of protesters.

• Timestamp: 

  3:05pm

  YEMEN - Doctors tell our special correspondent: "The number of injured just keeps rising"

• Timestamp: 

  2:59pm

  SYRIA - Al Jazeera's Cal Perry tweets that cell phone connections in Douma and Homs seem completely shut down.

• Timestamp: 

  2:43pm

  SYRIA - More footage of the unprecedented unrest emerges online. This YouTube clip, published by Sham news agency, shows demonstrations in the northwestern town of Edlib:
  

• Timestamp: 

  2:37pm

  SYRIA - Protesters in Daraa set fire to a Baath Party outpost and smashed a stone statue of Basil al-Assad, President Bashar al-Assad's late brother, witnesses said. One of them told Reuters news agency by telephone:

  The statue of Basil al-Assad is just a pile of stones. The protesters also set fire to a Baath Party outpost in the el-Mahatta area.

• Timestamp: 

  2:28pm

  YEMEN - Our special correspondent confirms one man died a few minutes ago in Taiz, as a result of a gunshot to the head. Two others are in a very serious condition, she tells us.

• Timestamp: 

  2:23pm

  SYRIA - More amateur video published by Sham news agency appears on YouTube. This one is from demonstrations in the coastal city of Tartus:
  

• Timestamp: 

  2:06pm

  SYRIA - Videos from today's protests are emerging online. This one, published by the Sham News Agency, purports to show injured protesters being treated in the Omari mosque in Daraa. [Sham - الشام - is another name for Damascus]

• Timestamp: 

  2:03pm

  SYRIA - At least 10 people were killed in Daraa, a hospital source said, after witnesses reported security forces opened fire to disperse demonstrators.

  The state news agency SANA reported shooting in Daraa, but it said "vandals" had opened fire on mass gatherings, killing a policeman and an ambulance driver and wounding dozens of police and residents.

• Timestamp: 

  1:55pm

  YEMEN - Update from Taiz - our special correspondent tells us that hundreds have now been injured - mostly from tear gas inhalation.

• Timestamp: 

  1:50pm

  IRAQ - Protesters in Tahrir Square, Baghdad, have been talking to Al Jazeera's Jane Arraf. Many are angry about the continued oresence of US military troops in the country. One who preferred not to give their name said:

  They have no credibility. They said, "By the end of 2011 we will be out of Iraq," and yesterday, Gates came here and said that there are hints about keeping the US forces, although they denied this before.

  They are not going to leave Iraq, and if they don’t leave Iraq by the end of 2011, then there will be no peaceful demonstrations, there will be something else.

• Timestamp: 

  1:41pm

  YEMEN - Two protesters shot dead among dozens wounded in the southern city of Taiz, says the AFP news agency.

• Timestamp: 

  1:38pm

  EGYPT - "The army and the people are one hand" is the same chant raised in Tahrir Square during the uprising against Mubarak, when protesters wanted the army to join their cause.

• Timestamp: 

  1:37pm

  EGYPT - Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna, reporting from Cairo, said the crowd was also calling for the immediate resignation of the army chief, following what they see as a lack of action on the part of the military. He told us:

  There were very strong orders that if any soldier took part in today's protests he would face immediate court martial.

  We saw a group of five soldiers, at least one of which was a senior officer, actually join the demonstration and address a portion of the crowd, which was chanting "The army and the people are one hand".

  Although they were only five soldiers, it is a very significant development - given the military's specific instructions.

• Timestamp: 

  1:29pm

  YEMEN - Our special correspondent says, according to medical sources, more than 50 people have been injured as a result of tear gas in Taiz.  Ten others were injured by batons or knives. One person has been shot with live ammunition, and is in critical condition.

• Timestamp: 

  1:20pm

  YEMEN -  Police reported to be shooting tear gas and live ammunition in Taiz - our special correspondent, who we aren't naming for security reasons, isn't yet sure if it's being fired in the air or at crowds. Watch this space for an update.

• Timestamp: 

  1:14pm

  YEMEN - Al Jazeera's special correspendent tells us:

  Saleh had at the beginning said he had accepted the offer to go to Saudi Arabia for mediation, but he is now saying he doesn't want anyone meddling in his own affairs.

  I just spoke to opposition leaders and they said this strengthens their own position, as it shows Saleh is isolated more and more in the international community - but it does lead to this stalemate.
  
  In Change Square, everwhere we looked we couldn't see the end of the lines of people, there are tens of thousands of people there. It is difficult to believe there is anyone left in their homes today in Sanaa, with the huge turnouts at both demonstrations.

• Timestamp: 

  1:02pm

  SYRIA - An eyewitness told Al Jazeera that at least seven people were killed by security forces in the southern border town of Daraa.

• Timestamp: 

  12:18pm

  SYRIA - Reuters quotes opposition activists in Damascus saying that automatic weapons fire rang out during a pro-democracy rally confronted by Syrian security forces in a suburb there.

• Timestamp: 

  12:03pm

  YEMEN - Read more about the latest updates from Yemen on our website here.

• Timestamp: 

  12:02pm

  SYRIA - This video on YouTube is said to show a protest in the Damascus suburb of Harasta today. 

• Timestamp: 

  12:00pm

  YEMEN - Embattled President Saleh rejected an exit plan by Gulf states trying to broker an end to bloody unrest in Yemen. Here is some of what he said on his address broadcast on state TV:

• Timestamp: 

  11:49am

  EGYPT - Thousands gather in Cairo's Tahrir Square, calling for prosecution of the ousted president and his regime. Read out latest news report here.

• Timestamp: 

  11:43am

  SYRIA Reuters quotes witnesses as saying security forces use live ammunition against protesters in Daraa.

• Timestamp: 

  11:37am

  YEMEN - Crowds of pro-Saleh supporters shown on Yemeni television during his address:

  

• Timestamp: 

  11:29am

  IRAQ - Amnesty International will release a report on April 12, urging the Iraqi authoritie to address attacks on protesters. In a statement, the group said:

  Forces deployed against demonstrators have used lived ammunition, killing and injuring protesters and bystanders.

  Amnesty International also found disturbing evidence of targeted attacks on political activists, torture and other ill-treatment of people arrested in connection with the protests, and attacks or threats against journalists, media outlets, government critics, academics and students.

  Amnesty International will call on Iraqi and Kurdistan Regional authorities to investigate the attacks and killings, torture and other ill-treatment, and hold the perpetrators to account.

• Timestamp: 

  11:24am

  EGYPT - Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna reports from Cairo's Tahrir square, where Friday prayers have ended and massive crowds have gathered:

  Within the crowd, there is no sign of political division, or political banners, just the egyptian flag waving

  Here, there is anger at military authorities for not taking action against the Mubarak regime. This is a crowd very angry, a crowd questioning the army and a crowd united about its concerns

• Timestamp: 

  11:19am

  YEMEN - In his address to supporters in Sanaa, President Saleh said:

  Our power comes from the power of our great people, not from Qatar, not from anyone else. This is blatant interference in Yemeni affairs...

  We were born free, and we have free will, and they have to respect our wishes. We reject any coup against democracy, the constitution and our freedom.

• Timestamp: 

  11:16am

  YEMEN - Al Jazeera's correspondent in Sanaa reported that there are tens of thousands of people gathered in Change Square, still demanding that President saleh leaves power. "they feel it is important to show solidarity and to show their resolve, no matter what happens to them," our correspondent said.

  She added:

  We met a university professor at Change Square who claims a member of the ruling party offered him money yesterday to attend the pro-Saleh rally.

• Timestamp: 

  11:13am

  SYRIA Mazen Darwish, an activist in Damascus, tells Al Jazeera that protests have been held in cities including Qamishli in the mainly Kurdish region, the coastal town of Banias, Deir e-Zor in the east and Daraa in the south. He says no violence has been reported but he's heard that security forces in Daraa have been using teargas against protesters.

• Timestamp: 

  11:12am

  YEMEN - Al Jazeera's correspondent in the Yemeni capital Sanaa said:

  President Saleh addressed his supporters in Seventy Square, and made a total rejection of the offer put forward by the GCC. According to that proposal, they had called for him to stand down and hand power to a coalition of tribal leaders and other political figures. But he said 'I reject, I reject, I reject'. He singled out Qatar and Al Jazeera and said 'we dont have to follow their agenda'.

• Timestamp: 

  11:01am

  OMAN - Heavy security has prevented fresh protests breaking out in the industrial capital Sohar. Dozens of armoured vehicles have blocked roads and worshippers attempting to enter mosques had their names checked against lists by security forces, Reuters reports.

  Protesters camped out in the city for more than a month before security forces moved them out last week.

  They had been attempting to demonstrate against the killing of at least one person and demanded the prosecution of ministers who have been sacked for corruption.

• Timestamp: 

  10:56am

   

  YEMEN - President Saleh slammed Qatar's intervention in Yemen's affairs. He said, "We derive power and legitimacy from the people. It is a unified democratic Yemen."

   

• Timestamp: 

  10:50am

  YEMEN - Addressing the country in a speech on state television, Yemen's Ali Abdullah Saleh said he rejects initiatives from any other country to resolve the current crisis there, Reuters reports.

• Timestamp: 

  10:46am

  YEMEN - President Ali Abdullah Saleh is expected to address the country in a speech broadcast on state television shortly. Friday prayers have ended and rival pro and anti government demonstrations are expected to gather momentum.

• Timestamp: 

  10:41am

  SYRIA - Al Jazeera's Cal Perry tweets from Damascus:

  Residents in #Deraa reporting that the police presence is heavy: police armed with electric batons - an attempt to quell protests. #Syria

• Timestamp: 

  10:26am

  EGYPT - About 3,000 people have gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna, reporting from the square, says the demands of the protesters are very clear: that action needs to be taken against ousted president Mubarak and those close to him, that there must be a presidential council established so that the people can express what they want to see as Egypt's future.

  Unlike on previous occasions recently, this is a fully representative gathering of EGypt's political movements, including the very powerful Muslim Brotherhood which had stayed away from recent gathering saying they would give the military council more time to meet the people's demands.

   

• Timestamp: 

  10:22am

  YEMEN - Groups of both pro and anti government demonstrators are rallying in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, Al Jazeera's correspondents report.

• Timestamp: 

  10:03am

  Another day of mass protests is planned across the Arab world after noon prayers on Friday.

  Here is an overview of the expected demonstrations.

  And reports from Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna in Cairo, as well as Cal Perry in Damascus.

• Timestamp: 

  9:34am

   

  SYRIA Al Jazeera's Cal Perry in Damascus says yesterday's move by President Bashar al-Assad to grant citizenships to 200,000-300,000 stateless Kurds can be interpreted as a measure to "keep the Kurdish community off the streets" today, as activists are calling for fresh protests.

   

  There is a lot of pressure on him [Assad] from people who want to see reform. They are tired of hearing the same old talk ... for the people of Daraa, who just recently buried their dead, they want to see those responsible brought to justice and until that happens, I think we'll see the situation here simmer.

   

   

• Timestamp: 

  9:09am

  EGYPT - Thousands of Egyptians are gathering to protest in Cairo's central Tahrir Square. They are holding banners and signs demanding the prosecution of former regime officials, including ousted president Hosni Mubarak.

• Timestamp: 

  9:02am

   

  YEMEN - Yemen's Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Kurbi said in a statement that the country's government is studying an initiative by Gulf Arab states to end a months-long confrontation with anti-regime protesters, the AFP news agency reported.

  Concerned by the continuing unrest in Yemen, members of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) offered to mediate between Yemen's government and the opposition.

   

• Timestamp: 

  8:38am

  IRAQ - At least five Iraqi soldiers and up to dozens of Iranian opposition members were wounded in overnight clashes at a base north of Baghdad after the Iraqi military moved in to part of the disputed camp, an Iraqi government spokesperson told Al Jazeera.

  The account could not be independently verified.

• Timestamp: 

  7:53am

  YEMEN - The United States froze its largest aid package for Yemen in February after popular protests broke out against the Yemeni president, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

  "The first instalment of the aid package, worth a potential $1 billion or more over several years, was set to be rolled out in February, marking the White House's largest bid at securing President Ali Abdullah Saleh's allegiance in its battle against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula," the publication said.

  Read more here.

• Timestamp: 

  7:33am

  IRAQ - Robert Gates, the US Defence Secretary, has arrived in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region for talks with regional president Massud Barzani on security needs after American troops pull out this year.

  

  [Image by AFP]

• Timestamp: 

  6:05am

  SYRIA - Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, issued a decree granting nationality to thousands of Kurds living in the eastern al-Hasaka region as part of efforts to ease resentment over nearly five decades of strict Baathist rule.

  Read the full article on our website here.

• Timestamp: 

  6:01am

  YEMEN - Less than two years ago a Yemeni opposition party leader told a US embassy official in Sanaa about a secret plan to oust President Ali Abdullah Saleh, The Washington Post reported.

  Several previously undisclosed US diplomatic cables, provided by the website WikiLeaks, revealed that US officials were aware of Yemen's political state but largely discounted the prospect that Saleh could be forced out, the newspaper's report said.

  Read more on The Washington Post's website.

• Timestamp: 

  5:44am

  YEMEN - An anti-government demonstrator attends a protest in the capital Sanaa on Thursday. [image by AFP]

  

• Timestamp: 

  4:05am

  JORDAN - A Jordanian man - Mohammed Abdul-Karim- set himself on fire outside the prime minister's office, on Thursday, in the first such act since political unrest hit the country in January.

  It was a similar act of self-immolation by Mohamed Bouazizi, a poor vegetable vendor in Tunisia in December, that ignited the wave of protests which have since swept through the region and seen the ousting of autocratic regimes in both Tunisia and Egypt.