Tunisian president opposes Saudi Arabia's 'excellent idea' to arm Syrian rebels [BBC Arabic, UK]

Presenter, Female #1
Tunisia's interim President Muncef al-Marzouki called for implementing the Yemeni model in Syria, which entails granting the incumbent president, his family and his regime's figureheads judicial immunity in exchange for seeking refuge in another country. Al-Marzouki suggested Russia could play that role. During the opening speech at the "Friends of Syria" conference in Tunisia, al-Marzouki said the aforementioned solution is not a fair one after all the bloodshed and destruction; however, he added, saving the Syrian people's lives is more important than justice.

Guest, Male #1 (Muncef al-Marzouki, Tunisian Interim President)
For us, to be the true friends of Syria means searching for a political solution that we can only see in the Yemeni model, which grants the Syrian president, his family, and his regime's figureheads judicial immunity. Russia could provide an exit mechanism in exchange for ending the bloodbath and transferring the presidency to the vice president, who could lead the transitional phase with the participation of the opposition. The transitional phase ends as soon as free and fair presidential and legislative elections are conducted, which will restore stability to Syria under a democratic and pluralistic system that guarantees harmony among all social components in the nation.

Presenter, Female #1
Al-Marzouki rejected military intervention in Syria from any party, and rejected arming Syrians to fight other Syrians. His statement comes in response to calls for arming the Free Syrian Army to fight the regime's loyalist forces.

Guest, Male #1
For us, to be true friends of Syria means to prevent as much bloodshed as possible. This will not be achieved with a military escalation, neither by arming some Syrians against other Syrians, nor with foreign military intervention from any party, from any party, from any party. We reject it completely because our ultimate goal is to help our Syrian brothers avoid sectarian conflicts, risks of war and chaos, destruction, and division.

Presenter, Female #1
This Friday, Syrian cities and towns witnessed demonstrations in which thousands of people participated. Dissidents announced the demonstrations are held in solidarity with the Baba Amr neighborhood of Homs, which has been reportedly under violent shelling for nearly 20 days. Protestors chanted slogans condemning President Bashar al-Assad's regime. Syrian opposition parties said security forces opened fire on protestors in many areas. The Syrian Revolution's General Commission said the death toll by the gunfire of security forces in Syria exceeded 60, mostly in Hama and Homs.

Reporter, Male #2
Residents of Homs protested despite the military and security campaign it has been enduring for three weeks. This is al-Khalidiya neighborhood, and this is Bab Dreeb. These images uploaded by activists remind people of scenes of daily protests the city has witnessed for many months in the Syrian uprising. Located at a hundred meters from these two neighborhoods is Baba Amr, which is being subjected to artillery shelling. Dissidents launched this Friday's protests under the slogan, "We will rise up for you, Baba Amr". The Syrian government says it is facing hundreds of armed militants entrenched in Homs. However, activists and foreign journalists who managed to sneak into the city say the Syrian military army's operations are hitting civilians. Protests erupted in a number of areas. In the cities and villages of Hasaka province, the Kurdish flag has become inseparable from the flag of independence. Reports coming out of al-Sukari neighborhood of Aleppo indicate that gunfire targeted protestors.

Guest, Male #3 (Voice of Mohamed al-Halabi, Syrian Revolution's Coordination Committee in Aleppo)
A massive demonstration was organized in solidarity with Baba Amr in Homs. Protestors burned Russian and Chinese flags. The neighborhoods of al-Sukari and al-Kallas also witnessed massive protests.

Reporter, Male #2
Protests also broke out in the cities and villages of Deir az-Zour. The Syrian opposition's organizations reported gunfire also targeted protestors in Idlib. In the capital Damascus and its countryside, security deployment were increased, and activists are challenging government forces. As for Dara'a, dissidents said protestors endured gunfire in the city and a number of its neighboring towns and villages. Wael al-Hajjar, BBC.

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Syria and Israel: Same oppressive methods, different targets [Future TV, Lebanon]

Presenter, Female # 1
The horrendous crimes committed by al-Assad's brigades against the Syrian people have shown similarities to the atrocities committed by the Israeli enemy. The picture of Muhammad al-Durra martyred in his father's arms is being repeated daily in the neighborhoods of Homs, where the killing does not even spare embryos that have not yet left their mothers' wombs.

Reporter, Female #2
This is in Palestine; Muhammad al-Durra is taking his last breath by his father's side. He was martyred by the gunfire of the Israeli army. And this is in Syria, Rabih parted from a life he barely experienced. He was killed by the bullets of Bashar al-Assad's forces. The two scenes are similar: children getting killed by armies that represent two sides of the same coin. They both justify their attacks by claiming they are fighting terrorists. Israelis feared Muhammad al-Durra and ended his young life because had he grown up, he would have stood up to an Israeli soldier, and told him to leave his land to preserve his grandparents' dignity and blood. The Syrian army was terrified by this child and thousands of his brothers, so they are killing them before they can breathe freedom; they kill them so they won't be able to protest for dignity.

Reporter, Female #2
Demanding freedom and dignity is a valid reason to kill entire populations; to eradicate the memories of the parents, while burying children in the arms of their fathers. The Israeli army burned Gaza and turned it to ash, because its inhabitants wanted to retrieve their right to the land. And in Homs, al-Assad brigades destroyed the city while its residents were inside, and burned both green and dry land to prevent its free people from planting the seeds of a spring that will soon overthrow the regime. A regime that fires its weapons to strangle anyone who rises up to breathe the air of freedom, and uses tanks and armored vehicles to crush the dignity of the free Syrian people.

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Worshippers prevent Israeli settlers from breaking into al-Aqsa compound [Dubai TV, UAE]

Presenter, Male #1
Tension and the occupation's police were both present today at the al-Aqsa Mosque. Since the early morning hours, Israeli police set up checkpoints at the entrances of the noble sanctuary and in areas overlooking occupied Jerusalem, as occupation soldiers checked IDs of Palestinians wishing to pray at al-Aqsa Mosque. Tension is running high in the city, following attempts by Jewish extremists to storm al-Aqsa Mosque and its squares, through the Mughrabi and Silsila gates. The Supreme Muslim Council of Palestine described the Israeli action as "provocative," and called for international and Arab intervention to put an end to it. Sherouk Asa'd reports from Jerusalem.

Reporter, Female #1
These video clips captured by Palestinian worshippers show the daily attempts of Jewish extremists to storm al-Aqsa Mosque. In response, unarmed worshippers are entrenched in the compound day and night to defend it. Jewish extremists usually storm the mosque from its western gate near the Buraq Wall, under the protection of the Israeli army; an indication that such a decision is shared by Jewish extremists and the official institution.

Guest, Male #2 (Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, Supreme Muslim Council Head)
The settlers don't dare enter al-Aqsa squares without police and government protection. The right-wing Israeli government supports these groups in their acts of aggression and arrogance.

Reporter, Female #1
The number of storming incidents has recently increased, amid fears over an Israeli plan to divide al-Aqsa Mosque between Jewish extremists in the western area adjacent to the Buraq Wall on one side, and Muslim worshippers on the other. The division plan is being implemented for a few hours each day, especially as Palestinians remain preoccupied in countering attacks by extremists.

Guest, Male #2 (Fakhri Abu Diab, Popular Committee for Defending Jerusalem)
The first step is to divide the mosque based on prayer times. This will be followed by another plan to divide the site. The occupation entity is trying to test the pulse of the Palestinian, Muslim, and Arab public.

Guest, Male #3 (Ahmed al-Ruwaidi, PA Official in Charge of Jerusalem File)
What we fear most in 2012 is a division of the holy Aqsa Mosque. However, our people in Jerusalem stepped up to their responsibility today and defended the mosque. I believe remaining steadfast in this city is the only way to defend our holy sites.

Reporter, Female #1
What Israel is doing today could amount to testing the pulse of the Palestinians in preparation for a greater project that extends beyond the division of al-Aqsa mosque. Israel's plan is as old as its occupation of East Jerusalem that started in 1967. Israel says it has entered the final stage of its plan, attributing the sudden acceleration to the world's distraction with recent changes in the region. Sherouk Asa'd, Dubai TV, occupied Jerusalem.

Presenter, Male #1
The Israeli occupation had a late encounter with the Gaza Strip. Israeli fighter jets carried out a nighttime raid on eastern parts of the Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza, injuring two Palestinians. The Israeli army said the raid targeted a Palestinian group that was getting ready to launch missiles at settlements adjacent to the Strip. The raid was preceded by an announcement by the Popular Resistance Committees that confirmed three rockets were launched at the area of Ourin in southern Israel.

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Clashes erupt on anniversary of Cave of Patriarchs massacre [IBA, Israel]

Clashes also erupted between security forces and Palestinians in the West Bank city of Hebron today. The confrontations took place during a rally commemorating the eighteenth anniversary of the massacre at the Cave of Patriarchs, when Jewish settler Baruch Goldstein murdered 29 Palestinians. Today's march was attended by some 300 Palestinian and Israeli activists, several of whom waved Syrian flags in support of the Syrian people. Sources in the Palestinian Authority reported that 15 protestors, including Knesset member Mohammad Barakeh, were lightly injured during those clashes. The group reportedly inhaled tear gas used by security forces to disperse the crowd.

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Kofi Annan appointed as UN-Arab League special envoy to Syria [IBA, Israel]

Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has been appointed by his successor, Ban Ki-moon, and the Arab League chief, Nabil al-Arabi, to serve as the two organizations' joint special envoy on the Syrian crisis. During the course of heading the UN, the 67-year-old Ghanaian diplomat visited the Arab republic, where he met with Syrian President Assad in 2006. According to an announcement from the UN, the Nobel Prize-winning Annan will promote a peaceful solution to the Syrian crisis, guided by last week's General Assembly resolution endorsing the Arab League plan to realize the democratic aspirations of the Syrian people, and for Assad to step down.

Joining us now in the studio to discuss the situation in Syria is Dr. Jonathan Spyer, the IDC global research and international affairs center, who just returned from his own secret trip to Syria.

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Bahraini opposition rallies on the Friday of the 'people reject humiliation' [Al-Alam, Iran]

Presenter, Female # 1
Political societies in Bahrain called for a mass march today at the entrance of the town of Bilad al-Qadeem, under the banner "the people reject humiliation." Night marches were held in all regions and were suppressed by the regime's forces with poisonous gas. Meanwhile, Bahraini religious scholar Sheikh Issa Qassem confirmed the regime is aggravating its injustice instead of retreating from it.

Reporter, Male # 1
The Bahraini people's actions continue across the country as part of the protest movement aimed at attaining freedom and social justice. The security response by the regime's forces also continues. In the capital Manama, regime forces cracked down on a march called for by the February 14 Coalition and prominent rights activist Nabeel Rajab that rallied under the banner "steadfastness." Regime forces used poisonous gas.

Guest, Male # 2 (Ayatollah Sheikh Issa Qassem, Bahraini Religious Scholar)
It is wrong, and completely wrong, to heighten the injustice, intensify civil strife, and continue to marginalize the people, and insist on tyranny and humiliation instead of retreating from this humiliation and injustice, and work on rectifying the situation to reestablish trust, and restore our mental state.

Reporter, Male # 1
At the same time, marches were held under the slogan "retribution for killers in loyalty to martyr Ja'afar al-Karami," who died last year by the gunfire of regime forces and the Saudi occupation during the storming of Pearl Roundabout. Clashes between protestors and regime forces took place in the area of Kardabad. The forces used live bullets, and blocked aid for the injured. Confrontations also occurred in the town of al-Musalla and the area of A'ali between protestors and regime forces. The forces responded with violence and used tear gas to disperse the demonstrators. And despite the crackdown, residents of al-Ma'ameer took to the street to confirm they will remain steadfast regardless of the oppression they face. In addition, residents of Sitra organized similar protests confirming that they insist on attaining retribution for all those responsible for firing on protestors, whether during the storming of Pearl Roundabout or during the events that followed.

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At least a dozen more Afghans killed as protests continue over Quran burning [Press TV, Iran]

At least a dozen people have been killed in fresh protests across Afghanistan against the US forces' burning of the Holy Quran. Fatalities were caused in the capital Kabul and three more provinces, including Herat. Police in Herat opened fire on demonstrators after they tried to storm the US consulate. At least three dozen people have been killed since anti-American protests erupted in Afghanistan on Tuesday. Two US troops are among the dead. US President Barack Obama has apologized over the matter, but outraged Afghans rejected the apology and demanded an immediate withdrawal of all foreign troops from their country. Protest rallies have been held in several other countries, including Bahrain, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Malaysia, to condemn American forces' burning of the Holy Quran.

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Nasrallah accuses Arab nations of trying to foment violence in Syria [Press TV, Iran]

Presenter, Male #1
The Secretary General of Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah has accused but didn't name a number of Arab countries of seeking to foment violence in Syria.

Guest, Male #2 (Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah Leader)
They insist that there is no political solution to Syria. I am really surprised. As I said days ago, why the Arab Peace Initiative, announced after 2000, is still on the table? I know some Arab officials said it wouldn't stay on the table for long, but it's been more than ten years since. It means the window of talks with Israel is open, but the window of talks with Syria is closed. They do not want a political solution. They look for conflict and destruction. Let's spell out responsibilities clearly. I agree that there are two parties fighting, but which of them is insisting on fighting, which is rejecting a political solution, which one is refusing an informal dialogue, who is instigating more fighting? Think about what Miss Clinton said yesterday, and about what the Israelis in the West say. They want inter-Arab fighting.

Presenter, Male #1
Sayyed Nasrallah said those Arab countries want chaos in Syria. He slammed their financial and military support for the Salafist terrorists who have sneaked into the country. Regarding Bahrain, he said the ruling regime there is awaiting orders to resolve the crisis, but did not say where the order would be coming from. Nasrallah also accused Israel of encouraging chaos in Islamic countries in order to advance its agenda.

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Palestinian woman goes on hunger strike after being recaptured by Israeli forces [Press TV, Iran]

Presenter, Male #1
A Palestinian woman recaptured by Israeli forces has been on a hunger strike for eight days to protest her illegal detention. Israeli forces detained Hana al-Shalabi on February 16, months after she was released in a prisoner swap deal. The Palestinian Prisoners' Affairs minister said that Israel has ordered Shalabi to be jailed for six months without trial. Shalabi had spent thirty months in detention before her release last year. The news comes shortly after another Palestinian prisoner, Khader Adnan, ended his 66-day hunger strike after a deal secured his release in April. Adnan stopped eating in mid-December to protest against being held under administrative detention, which means he could have been held indefinitely without trial or charge.

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Yemen's new president faces multiple challenges [Al Jazeera, Qatar]

Presenter, Male #1
The Yemeni city of Taiz is witnessing celebrations marking the end of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh's rule, as the date of the presidential power transfer to Abd Rabbu Mansur Hadi nears. While many residents of the city are calling on the president-elect to work on fulfilling all the demands of the revolutionaries, others expressed fear that Mansur Hadi will not be able to meet those demands.

Reporter, Male #2
The celebratory atmosphere overtaking the city of Taiz over Abd Rabbu Mansur Hadi's ascension to power did not prevent protestors from reaffirming that the revolution is continuing. They stressed the importance of cleansing the country from those they describe as corrupt. The voice of the revolution has not faltered. This is confirmed by civilians and military members who voted for Hadi.

Guest, Male #3
Ali Saleh left but the regime remains, so we must continue our struggle until the remnants of the regime are gone. We are continuing and shall continue our revolution until we fulfill the goals of the revolution, both the short and long-term goals.

Reporter, Male #2
This statement was similar to the slogans chanted by participants in the celebratory demonstrations rejoicing over the end of Ali Abdullah Saleh's era. However, restoring security seems to be the priority for the majority of the residents.

Guest, Female #1
Security, lowering prices, and to be able to make a living.

Reporter, Male #2
Many residents are eagerly anticipating the post-election phase as if they are waiting to pick the fruits of their sacrifices.

Guest, Male #4
We expect a lot from him. The squares are still in front of us.

Reporter, Male #2
In the countryside as in the city, discrepancies seem controversial. Hadi is receiving many votes; however, the protestors' voices are also rising. They are demanding Saleh's prosecution, the dismissal of his relatives from the army and security, and calling for bringing to justice those they say are the killers of the revolutionaries. This region is called Wadi ad-Dabab, located in the western parts of the city. Like other parts of the countryside, it lacks life's basic necessities. And because of the poor living conditions, these young men have dropped out of school to seek farming work, while continuing to follow the developments of the revolution in their country.

Reporter, Male #2
So all eyes are on the newly-formed government to see how it will deal with the people's demands, and how fast it will be able to meet the expectations of the next phase in the country's history. Hamdi al-Bukari, Al Jazeera, Taiz.