Each week, HuffPost World will provide the top stories out of Syria and a recap of events in the country's year-long uprising, as President Bashar Assad’s regime continues its bloody crackdown.
May 5 - May 11 In Review
- Twin suicide blasts rocked the capital Damascus on Thursday, killing at least 55 people and injuring more than 370. The blasts were the deadliest anti-regime attacks since the start of the uprising 14 months ago.
- A roadside bomb targeting a military truck wounded 6 soldiers in Syria's southern city of Daraa on Wednesday. The truck was driving behind a convoy of U.N. ceasefire monitors.
- U.N.-Arab League Envoy Kofi Annan said the U.N.-brokered peace plan is Syria's only hope for avoiding civil war.
- Syria's opposition dismissed the country's parliamentary elections as a sham.
Media Not To Miss
Al Jazeera -- James Bays Reports From Al-Qusayr
Both government troops and opposition fighters have desperately tried to gain control of al-Qusayr, a crucial border town.
Columbia Journalism Review -- 'The Spy Who Came In From The Code'
Matthieu Aikins explains how journalists have failed to keep up to speed with technological advancements in surveillance, endangering their sources during the Syrian and Libyan revolts.
It’s easy to argue that McAllister should have taken stronger precautions, but what, exactly? How many reporters are familiar enough with the technical aspects of digital security that they could protect their computers and phones from the Syrian intelligence service? The fact that McAllister, an experienced and committed journalist, jeopardized his sources with inadequate digital precautions is indicative of a broader problem in journalism today: We haven’t kept pace with technological advancements that have revolutionized both information-gathering and surveillance.
AP Photos -- Protesters Demonstrate In Homs
In the photos below, protesters wave Syrian revolutionary flags during a demonstration at al-Hamra neighborhood in Homs, Syria, on Friday, May 11, 2012.
New York Times -- 'Though Disparate, Syria Rebels Tenacious Against Crackdown'
Anne Barnard reports on the fragmented state of Syria's opposition.
An eclectic mix of fighters and unarmed protesters opposes Mr. Assad. There are pious clerics and people who admit they rarely pray, experienced soldiers and barely trained former conscripts, wealthy doctors and jobless youths. Some say they want Islamic law, while others insist that civil law alone should rule. Their goals are matters of intense curiosity as the United States and others debate whether and how to directly assist the opposition inside Syria. Ask their views, and the answers can be complex.
BBC -- "Inside Syria's 'Ghost Town'"
Lyse Doucet travelled with UN observers to Homs, which has been devastated by fighting. Watch below:
Agence France Presse -- Pictures From A Warzone
On its photoblog, Agence France Presse reports on news photography in Syria and how the agency procures photos from the media-locked country.
SANA is a bit like Pravda in that it is the only official agency in the country. It is, in other words, a propaganda organ. But it’s also very reactive, and is generally on the scene as soon as something major happens. Their approach to photojournalism is also akin to the old Soviet model: first, let the photographers do their job and take pictures, lots of them. But what they do with them afterward is another matter. That’s when the censorship process kicks it, though occasionally they’ll let photos through without the usually vetting process.
Shaam News Network -- Photo Purports To Show UN Observers
This image made from amateur video released by the Shaam News Network and accessed Wednesday, May 9, 2012, purports to show U.N. observers walking with Syrian government troops in Talbeesa, Homs, Syria. A roadside bomb struck a Syrian military truck Wednesday, wounding six soldiers just seconds after a convoy carrying the head of the U.N. observer mission passed by. (AP Photo/Shaam News Network via AP video)