At least 950 people (that we know of) were killed in Syria over the course of November, making it the worst month in the uprising's history. Joseph Farag worries about what will happen if this was, in fact, the first month of Syria's civil war:
While Libya’s uprising also transformed into a civil war, the conflict was ultimately relatively brief. By contrast, Syria’s military has over 300,000 active troops with another 450,000 available on reserve. And while there have been numerous defectors from the military, it is unlikely that large numbers of soldiers will defect en masse. As such, a Syrian civil war could prove to be protracted, particularly as international initiatives, such as the recent Arab League sanctions, do not seem to be stemming the tide of violence.
Whether Assad's acquiescence [NYT] to an Arab League observer force will change this remains to be seen. Interestingly, Hamas – whose exile leadership is headquartered in Damascus – appears to be pulling out of Syria, seemingly out of concern for public opinion. One can understand their thinking after Razan Ghazzawi, a pro-Hamas and anti-Assad Syrian blogger detained by the regime, has become something of an international cause celebre. One can find more information on the #FreeRazan campaign here. In this video, a family in Baba Amr, Homs is forced to evacuate a car under sniper fire:
These protestors in Idlib aren't very fond of Russia and China sheltering Assad internationally:
Finally, here's a large funeral-protest in Deir Ba'alba, Homs:
The Dish 