11.19pm GMT: One piece of late news – Egypt's military rulers have appointed retired judge Tareq al-Bishry to head a committee set up to propose constitutional changes, according to reports on al-Jazeera and Reuters.

Bishry is said to be respected in legal circles for his independent views.

The military announced on Sunday that it was forming a committee to amend the constitution and define rules for a referendum on the changes.

10.30pm GMT: Time to wrap up tonight's live blog as the ripples from Tunisia and Egypt continue to be felt across the middle east and Maghreb in the form of protests and – in some cases – violence by the ruling authorities:

Bahrain: On the anniversary of the country's 2002 constitution, large demonstrations in a "day of rage" across the small island state saw at least 25 people injured, and one man dead after suffering severe head trauma.

The protesters want changes to the country's constitution, an elected prime minister, the release of political prisoners, and an end to the use of torture.

Iran: Events in Egypt appear to have inspired the opposition forces to reignite the protests last seen in 2009, with the police and government allies resorting to similar tactics, blocking access to opposition leaders, cutting off phone service and allowing attacks on protesters. At least one person is reported to have died.

• Yemen: The fourth day of continuing protests saw around 1,000 marchers, including lawyers in courtroom robes, on the streets of Sanaa — a quieter affair than the violence of Sunday, when Human Rights Watch said police used stun guns and batons against demonstrators and small mobs of government supports attacked protesters.

• Egypt: A meeting between military leaders and pro-democracy representatives produced details about plans for fresh elections and constitutional changes. Attempts to clear Tahrir Square of protesters were only partly successful. Former president Hosni Mubarak is reported to be ill in Sharmal-Sheik, while veteran politician Amr Moussa said he wants to run for president.

You read more detailed updates of the day's events here and here. Thanks for reading.

10.17pm GMT: Now the US government also says it has received a formal request from Egypt to freeze the assets of a group of officials in the Mubarak regime.

The state department's spokesman PJ Crowley said no request had been received regarding Hosni Mubarak himself, by a "senior U.S. administration official" told Reuters that other names had been mentioned: "We have received requests regarding other officials," he said.

Earlier, the UK, France and the EU announced they had received requests from Egypt.

10.12pm GMT: This Egyptian presidency website says it all.

10pm GMT: PBS's Tehran bureau's blog has some gripping eyewitness accounts of the protests in Tehran today:

When I reached Eskandari Street it looked like a war zone: smoke, dust, teargas, screaming people, flying stones and regular attacks by the well equipped motorcycle riding guards. A petite young girl with a green wristband and a small backpack was walking to my left. Just before we reached Navab Avenue the guards charged from behind, one of their clubs hit my left leg but three of them attacked the girl relentlessly. She screamed and fell to the ground, but the guards kept hitting her. I ran towards them, grabbed the girl's right hand and released her from the grip of the guards. She was in a daze and crying unstoppably. I pushed her north into Navab Avenue towards Tohid Square away from Azadi Avenue when the guards charged towards us. This time the crowd fought back and stones of all sizes were directed back at them. This gave me a bit of time to ask one of the restaurants to open their doors and let us in. The girl was in shock and pain. I got her some water and asked how she was. Her clothes were dusty, her backpack was torn and her hands were shaking. "Why?" she kept asking.

9.47pm GMT: Bahrain's foreign minister Khalid al-Khalifa is a regular Twitter user. Here is his latest on today's events:

One person died today . MOI opened investigation .. With Sh Rashid at its helm, I am confident truth will prevail Khalid Alkhalifa

khalidalkhalifa

Note: Khalifa follows Wael Ghonim on Twitter and is followed back by the Egyptian activist.

(In his Twitter bio Khalifa describes himself as: "Diplomat, ambassador, foreign minister of Bahrain, reader, world traveler, bon vivant".)

9.30pm GMT: Inside Iran, the Islamic Republic's News Agency has managed to avoid any mention of the protests, while the semi-official Fars news agency – which boasts links to the Revolutionary Guard hardcore – has triumphant news: "Agents of the United States and Zionism were defeated again."

According to Fars, only a few hundred "foolish" people took to the streets:

In today's illegal gathering, elements of the Mojahedin Khalgh [MKO], monarchists, thugs, and criminal of sedition were present in some streets in Tehran to support the people of Egypt and Tunis, but they did not chant a single slogan in their support. After [the protestors] realized there was not going to be popular support for them, they began running away and left the scene.

9.21pm GMT: The website insideIran.org has an interview with "Ali," billed as a student activist at Amir Kabir University in Tehran who organised a student demonstration today:

Q: How did the police treat the demonstrators? A: Some police forces were surprisingly nice, especially around Azadi Square. But other forces in other areas used brute force. I saw a man whose face was struck with something. I couldn't tell what it was, but there was blood all over him and he fell down. The government is really worried about people with cameras and this man had a camera. He was taking pictures. The government doesn't want any media coverage. There was such little information about what to do and where to go. We got all our information from the internet. And there is no information about what to do next. But I am very happy about today's turnout.

9.15pm GMT: In Iran, the authorities are using the state media to accuse opposition leaders of being part of a Western plot to overthrow the Islamic system. According to state TV:

Hypocrites, monarchists, thugs and seditionists who wanted to create public disorder in Iran were arrested by our brave nation ... These people set garbage bins on fire and damaged public property.

9pm GMT: The Guardian's Saeed Kamali Dehghan reports on today's protests in Iran:

Supporters of the Green movement appeared in scattered groups in various locations in central Tehran and other big cities in what was seen as the Iranian opposition's first attempt in more than a year to hold street protests against the government. The riot police and government-sponsored plainclothes basiji militia used teargas, wielded batons and opened fire to disperse protesters who chanted "death to the dictator", a reference to both Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Witnesses told the Guardian that despite a heavy security presence, small groups of people succeeded in gathering in main squares leading to Azadi ("freedom") Square – a chosen focal point.

Because of a government ban on reporting on the protests by the international media, footage and coverage today has been sparse.

8.52pm GMT: An Iranian has been shot dead during today's protests in Tehran, with the government-aligned Fars news agency blaming opposition supporters for the shooting.

Reuters quotes Fars as claiming: "One person was shot dead and several were wounded by seditionists [opposition supporters] who staged a rally in Tehran," but without giving any further details.

8.35pm GMT: The US State Department has launched a Twitter account in Farsi, just in time for today's protests in Iran:

The account USA darFarsi now has more than 2,000 followers, not bad for one day.

8.26pm GMT: There are rumours – and let us stress, just rumours at this point – of more deaths in Bahrain following today's protests.

In the meantime the Bahraini government has acknowledged the death of protester Ali Abdulhadi al-Mushaima, with the the official Bahraini news agency, BNA, announcing the news and the minister of interior expressing his condolences.

8.17pm GMT: More from Yemen, this time from Reuters, where Mohammed Ghobari and Khaled Abdullah report:

Government loyalists armed with broken bottles, daggers and rocks chased down thousands of pro-reform demonstrators in Yemen's capital on Monday, turning unrest inspired by Egypt's uprising increasingly violent. Police who had been trying to keep the sides apart locked several thousand fleeing protesters inside the Sanaa University campus near where they had been holding their rally. Five people were wounded in the melee, an opposition source said. "Hey Ali, get out, get out!" anti-government protesters shouted, referring to President Ali Abdullah Saleh, a US ally against al-Qaida's resurgent Yemen-based wing who has been in power for over 30 years. "There is no solution except to leave."

Meanwhile, a further 12 people were injured in Taiz, with police fired warning shots into the air while anti-government demonstrators clashed with President Saleh's supporters. Even in Aden, in a region where al-Qaida is active, hundreds marched in protest.

8.09pm GMT: In Yemen, the Associated press reports of violent clashes between pro-government forces and demonstrators throughout the day in Sanaa and Taiz. AP's Ahmen al-Haj reports from Sanaa:

University students, rights activists and lawmakers marched Monday in the capital, Sanaa. Lawyers in black robes, led by their union chief, joined the demonstrators shouting slogans against the security forces and "the people want the regime to step down," a slogan mirroring those used in Egypt and Tunisia. "A revolution of free opinion ... A revolution of freedom ... We should decide," shouted the protesters. A counter-demonstration of at least a hundred government supporters holding up pictures of President Ali Abdullah Saleh confronted the protesters, shouting slogans against terrorism and supporting the government's call for dialogue.

The BBC says one of its journalists and his cameraman were deliberately attacked in Yemen by government supporters while reporting on the protests against President Saleh.

Abdullah Ghorab, the BBC's Arabic correspondent in Yemen, was left cut, bruised and with a bleeding nose in the incident in the capital, Sanaa. Cameraman Mohammed Omran was beaten and had his mobile phone and watch taken, the BBC said in a statement.

Ghorab's attackers pulled him towards the car of Hafez Meiyad, a Yemeni official known to be close to the president, who rebuked the reporter for tarnishing the country's reputation, the statement said.

7.58pm GMT: Spanish media are reporting that that the country's consul in Tehran, Ignacio Pérez Cambra, was detained by police for four hours during today's protests in Iran's capital. The Guardian's Giles Tremlett in Madrid writes:

Apparently the Spanish consul was detained along with an embassy chauffeur by six plain clothes police officers as he tried to leave either the consulate or the embassy in Tehran. He has been released. The report originates from Spain's EFE news agency, citing diplomatic sources.

7.41pm GMT: Even Kuwait has not been immune from the pro-democracy outbreaks. Opposition groups in the country had called for anti-government protests to take place but have now delayed the protest until March 8.

Last week the Kuwaiti government issued a stern reminder that unlicensed protests would be stamped on, in a statement:

Based on the principle that security is a collective responsibility that should be shouldered by all, the ministry would like to remind the citizens of awareness about nature of the ongoing incidents in the region. These incidents could have impacts on everybody. The security of citizens is the focus of our efforts and the guarantee for stability. Therefore, the ministry stresses that any gatherings, rallies or marches after Friday noon prayers would be deemed a breach of the public rally law. Everybody should put the interests of the homeland above all considerations.

7.33pm GMT: The Daily Telegraph sends a reporter to the resort next to Mubarak's residence in Sharm el-Sheik, for a glimpse of the former president's estate:

It is a snatched view that, coupled with the simple question 'is that Mubarak's home?' is enough for non-guests to quickly be escorted from the premises. "My staff told me you were asking questions," says the public relations manager standing in the opulent foyer that for three weeks has been nearly devoid of tourists. "Everything is well in our hotel, but now you have to leave."

7.25pm GMT: The violent response by Bahrain's security forces to today's protests may cause some of the island state's middle class to break ranks with the government.

Catastrophic failure by MOI to handle today's peaceful situation. Overreaction, paranoia, and mindless. Shameful. #Bahrain @moi_bahrain Ehsan Al-Kooheji

ehsankooheji

Here's a tweet from Ehsan al-Kooheji, a Bahraini "IT geek".

7.20pm GMT: A major development in Bahrain where there are reports that one person has been killed by security forces during a protest:

According to sources in the hospital, and confirmed by Nabeel Rajab from a Bahraini human rights organisation, Ali Abdulhadi al-Mushaima, 27, was shot in the back with live ammunition. Protesters are incensed.

Here's a link of what is said to be a photo of the dead man.

7.11pm GMT: Amr Moussa has announced that he will be run in Egypt's presidential elections scheduled for September. Ahram Online reports:

According to activist Ahmed Nassar, Moussa, Secretary General of the Arab League, stated that he will be devoting his time in the coming months to his presidential campaign as soon as he hands over his Arab League post in March. Moreover, Moussa met January 25 activists at the Arab League's headquarters yesterday where they laid out a plan for a popular campaign focusing on the principles of law, democracy and human rights.

6.56pm GMT: Hillary Clinton has sent a message of support for Iranian protesters and accused Iran's government of "hypocrisy" for praising the protests in Egypt while cracking down on dissent in its own country.

Clinton said Iran's protesters "deserve to have the same rights that they saw being played out in Egypt and are part of their own birthright," and that the US government "very clearly and directly support the aspirations of the people who are in the streets" of Tehran.

6.35pm GMT: Reuters correspondents Marwa Awad and Andrew Hammond in Cairo have posted a fuller account of the military's timetable to amend Egypt's constitution:

[Wael] Ghonim, a Google executive who was detained for two weeks during the protests, confirmed to Reuters the contents of the meeting that he published on social networking site Facebook. "A constitutional committee known for integrity, honour and not belonging to any political trends has been formed to finish constitutional amendments in the space of 10 days and and they will be put to a referendum within two months," said the Facebook page, called "We are all Khaled Said". The page, set up by Ghonim, is dedicated to a web activist from Alexandria who died in police custody last year. Abdel-Rahman Samir, another activist present at the meeting, said he believed the two generals had meant that articles of the constitution that needed revising would be identified within 10 days, not that drafting would be completed by then. An army source said the immediate priority was restoring security and reviving the economy, adding that the two-month target for a vote on the constitution was a "general time-frame". Ghonim's Facebook page account also said the army would search for all demonstrators who went missing during the uprising based on a list that the youth activists will prepare.

The army also agreed to start a campaign to raise 100bn Egyptian pounds ($17bn) in donations to rebuild the country of 80 million people, and wants young Egyptians to set up new political parties.

6.28pm GMT: Hosni Mubarak is in "bad health," according to Egypt's ambassador to the US, confirming the rumours:

Egypt's ambassador to the United States says Hosni Mubarak may be in "bad health," the first word on the 82-year-old ousted president's health since he stepped down from office on Friday. Speaking Monday on NBC's Today show, Sameh Shoukry said he had received the information about Mubarak but could not be more specific. Two Cairo newspapers said Mubarak was refusing to take medication, suffering from depression and repeatedly passing out at his residence in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. There was no immediate confirmation of the reports.

6.14pm GMT: Here's an update on our earlier report that Egypt's ruling military council said it plans to hold a referendum on constitutional amendments within two months.

The report comes from comments members of the council made to youth activists. Wael Ghonim said on his Facebook page (in Arabic) that he and seven other activists met two members of the council on Sunday evening.

Update: The Arabist blog translates the highlights:

The meeting is described in very positive terms: "We noticed an absence of paternalism in the conversation ('You don't know your own interest, son.') For the first time we sat with an Egyptian official who listened more than he spoke." Although the young participants did tell the military they should have a better media communications strategy (please! enough with these cryptic SMS messages). This is what the military had to say: - The military does not want power and thinks a civilian government is the only path towards progress. They only want to safeguard the gains of the revolution. - Keeping the current government is place is necessary but only until it can carry out the needed changes. - The military wants to see corruption pursued and prosecuted - A constitutional committee will be formed during the next 10 days; a new constitution will be voted on in a referendum in 2 months. - The military encourages the people to take steps towards forming new political parties - The military will be holding meetings with representatives of all political forces - They military will supervise a campaign to raise 100 billion pounds in donations repair the damages of the revolution. - Egyptians need to go back to work, put their money back in the stock market, and attract tourists again - Voting in the constitutional referendum and the presidential elections will be just with the national ID card

6.02pm GMT: The Wall Street Journal's Farnaz Fassihi reports on the house arrest of Iranian opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi, with communication to their home and mobile phones cut off. Elsewhere cellphone coverage appeared to be blocked near the routes of protest marches:

About 4,000 people gathered in Azadi Square, in central Tehran, and more were streaming in, with dozens of police on motorbikes circling the square, according to eyewitnesses, opposition websites and Internet posts. Witnesses said a few thousand protesters had also gathered at Imam Hussein square, sitting on the ground and breaking out in chants when police tried to disperse them. Witnesses said crowds were swelling in central Tehran, with people silently marching in large numbers toward Azadi Square. Shopkeepers and restaurants along the route had been shut down, and security forces surrounded the campus of Tehran University, preventing students from entering. Thousands of student activists also gathered at the campus of Sharif University, preparing to march to the square. One activist posted on a blog that so far police haven't prevented students from joining the demonstrations. The main route of the protesters appeared to be following Enghelab Avenue, one of Tehran's longest and widest streets. By mid-afternoon, uniformed security forces had lined many Tehran streets, diverting traffic and blocking all access — on foot and by car — to Azadi Square, according to eyewitnesses. Metro stations near the protest route been closed. Opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi were placed under house arrest early Monday, with communication lines to their home and mobile phones cut off, according to opposition websites. Police cars blocked the entry to their streets and, at one point, prevented Mr Mousavi's wife from leaving her house.

5.42pm GMT: The BBC is complaining at the difficultly of filming in Iran. Here are some Radio Farda videos from Iran today, said to be of protests in Tehran near the Navab Metro station. Above: the video shows protesters setting fire to a poster featuring images of Khomeini and Khamenei – and this more disturbing video shows an attempt by one person – alleged to be a plain clothes policeman – to stop a similar protest, enraging the protesters nearby to his cost.

5.29pm GMT: Is it too soon for jokes about Egypt's revolution? The satirical British site the Daily Mash doesn't think so:

The Egyptian army last night thanked demonstrators in Cairo for their military coup, adding that it was a very nice one. President Omar Suleiman, whose real first name turns out to be 'General', said the coup was very thoughtful of the Egyptian people, particularly as it came with lots of lovely press coverage.

5.15pm GMT: Time for a summary of the latest events:

• Protests are continuing across the middle east, as unrest spreads following the events in Egypt and Tunisia. Demonstrations are continuing in Egypt, while there have been clashes in Iran, Bahrain and Yemen

• In Iran, news is emerging of multiple small-scale protests in Tehran, where they have been met by armed riot police, as well as demonstrations taking place in other regions, including Isfahan and Shiraz

• In Egypt, attempts by military police to clear protesters from Tahrir Square were initially successful but protesters later returned. Egypt's stock exchange remains closed and there are reports that a former president Hosni Mubarak has been in a coma since Saturday

• The British government and European Union have confirmed that they have received formal requests from Egypt to investigate and freeze assests belonging to members of the Mubarak regime

• In Bahrain, protests in the capital Manama have spread to Duraz and Sanabis, and drawn a strong response from security forces, with reports of beatings and warning shots being fired

• In Yemen, protests have entered their fourth day, with at least 17 people wounded today during clashes with armed supporters of the government in Sanaa and Taiz

5pm GMT: My colleague Saeed Kamali Dehghan passes on news that HRANA, an Iranian human rights website, reports that at least one person has been killed and three injured when the riot police opened fire at protesters near Tohid square in central Tehran.

According to HRANA, at least 250 people have been arrested during today's protest in Tehran.

4.54pm GMT: Here's an informative if depressing email from a reader in Bahrain with valuable insights into the protests going on in the Gulf state:

First of all, the protests in Bahrain were never about changing a regime. They are a demand by the majority of the people of Bahrain for human rights which have been eroding swiftly since just before the elections in October last year and continue to decline. All the progress made by the government has been reversed and then some. The riot police, almost entirely non-Bahraini, have been preparing for today's protests since they were announced. The intention was always to quash the protests before they could gather any steam and to isolate the hotspots to prevent the protestors consolidating. The emphasis seems to be on swiftly resolving the uprisings, and as such the police (if you can call them that) are attempting to disperse peaceful gatherings with rubber bullets, teargas, soundbombs and by beating civilians with batons. By the end of today, hundreds if not thousands of innocent, poor Bahrainis will be languishing in prison for as long as the security apparatus deems fit. There have been scattered reports that additional foreign special forces were flown in specifically to help deal with today's protests, primarily from Pakistan, though they cannot be confirmed. The main source of news seems to be Twitter, though anybody putting their name to any information that can be viewed as damaging the image of the Kingdom in the eyes of the international media are either brave or stupid. There have been reports that ... they are actively preventing anybody, civilian or otherwise, from taking any photos or footage of the clashes. These protests will, the establishment hopes, be swept under the rug as briskly and harshly as is effectively possible. I want to thank the Guardian for its prominent coverage, and I hope that it continues for as long as the people of Bahrain have the strength to fight for the rights that they should be afforded as human beings. International media is likely the only way that reform will be instigated, through shaming the governments of western powers who preach about freedoms while ignoring the plight of so many for so long.

4.36pm GMT: More from Hague's statement to the Parliament during foreign affairs questions just now.

On the disturbances in Yemen, Hague said: "There is a serious threat to our national security from the operation of al-Qaida in Yemen," adding that the UK's Department for International Development contributed £50m in aid for education, health care and microfinance initiatives.

On Egypt, Hague reiterated the UK government's position of calling for the release of political detainees and a firm timetable for elections to take place within six months.

"But democracy is more than about holding elections," Hague said, citing the need for new political parties, the encouragement of civil society and the lifting of emergency laws.

Hague also mentioned the British government's links to the Muslim Brotherhood: "We retain certain contacts with the Muslim Brotherhood," he said, in particular those who won seats in Egypt's 2005 elections, adding "We will maintain that contact with them."

4.25pm GMT: UK foreign secretary William Hague has just told the House of Commons that Britain has received a formal request from the Egyptian government to freeze assets belonging to senior officials of the Mubarak regime.

Hague says the investigation will be conducted by the Serious Organised Crime Agency to look into "assets acquired through corruption".

The European Union says it has also received a similar request.

4.14pm GMT: Here is some terrifying YouTube video footage of Bahraini riot police charging protesters. We can't verify the clip but it was forwarded by a reader in Bahrain and gives a remarkable view of what it's like to be caught up in such a situation.

Thanks Haroon, this is Richard Adams in the Guardian's Washington bureau, where we will be continuing coverage of events in the Middle East and the Maghreb.

4.03pm: Onemillionneda.com has created a map of where Iranian protesters were gathered today and last night together with links to YouTube videos of various demonstrations.

I'm handing over to my colleague Richard Adams now.

3.56pm: The Egyptian military has told youth activists that it will hold a referendum on a new constitution within two months, Reuters is reporting.

It is just one line on Reuters at the moment but it begs lots of questions, not least who will draw up the constitution that is to be voted on.

3.50pm: Local and international journalists have been attacked and beaten by police and government supporters in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, the Associated Press is reporting.

3.44pm: CNN reports that "thousands" marched along Revolution Avenue in Tehran in a largely peaceful procession but also says that security forces fired paint-ball guns and teargas at protesters outside Tehran University.

3.35pm: The ministry of information in Bahrain started tweeting today. Earlier it used its account to chide someone over their spelling of the word "sheikh" (it's now been deleted, I should have taken a screengrab) but it has since been using it to offer its own narrative of today's events in the country. Here's a sample (some of them are automatic translations so the language is a bit odd):

Illegal rally in Karzakan 3 policemen attacked, Police had to fire 2 rubber bullet. 1st as warning shot 2nd bounced & hit a demonstrator Interior Minister met the father of the man injured in Karzakan. He directed that the injured be treated abroad & has ordered an inquiry. What happened in Nuwaidrat today resulted in one person being injured. He is in hospital & is stable. He had suffered bruises in the face. Rallies are illegal in several areas and warnings not to legality and disobeying been dealing with them using natural gas

3.27pm: It's almost 6.30pm Tehran time and reports from various sources suggest that protesters succeeded in gathering in scattered groups in various parts of the capital, mostly in central areas such as Sadeghieh square, Enghelab Square and Vali-e-Asr.

Eyewitnesses told opposition websites that the riot police used tear gas and wielded batons to disperse protesters. They said that the security forces have blocked the streets to Azadi (freedom) Square where the protesters had planned to gather at the end.

At the same time, protesters in the cities of Shiraz, Isfahan, Rasht, Mashhad and Kermanshah have given accounts of the presence of hundreds of people in streets.

Eyewitnesses from Tehran told BBC Persian TV that gunshots have been heard in different places and "significant" numbers of protesters have gathered despite the ban.

Access to the websites of opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi has been restricted.

Videos of today's protest, posted on YouTube, showed protesters chanting "Khamenei, shame on you!" and "Death to dictator".

3.24pm: There are still reports of clashes and people having been injured in Bahrain.

@bahraini14feb

Many direct head injuries in protesters more than 20 people carried to hospital by ambulence including many women #bahrain #feb14

@maryamalkhawaja, head of the foreign relations office of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights has been tweeting furiously today.

Around 300 people just got attacked at human rights activists march #feb14 they just fired straight at our car



Video has also been posted of people apparently fleeing from teargas in the north-west village of Bani Jamra.

3.01pm: @oxfordgirl, who rose to prominence for helping to mobilise the opposition movement from a quiet village in Oxfordshire via Twitter, has been very active again today:

-

2.47pm: A couple of videos from Iran are worth viewing. The first shows Iranian protesters against the current regime singing revolutionary songs at Sharif University. And this below shows a protester on top of a crane in Qasr cross in Qoddosi street in Tehran, holding pictures of martyrs killed in 2009 post-election unrest.

-

2.41pm: Reuters is also reporting teargas being used against protesters in central Tehran:

Iranian security forces fired teargas in central Tehran on Monday to disperse opposition supporters marching in a banned rally inspired by popular uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia, a witness said. "There are thousands of people marching ... not chanting slogans ... Security forces fired teargas to disperse them near Imam Hossein square," said the witness.

2.36pm: The New York Times has an interesting article on how Tunisian and Egyptian activists learnt from each other. Perhaps others will pick up the lessons as well.

Young Egyptian and Tunisian activists brainstormed on the use of technology to evade surveillance, commiserated about torture and traded practical tips on how to stand up to rubber bullets and organize barricades.

They fused their secular expertise in social networks with a discipline culled from religious movements and combined the energy of soccer fans with the sophistication of surgeons. Breaking free from older veterans of the Arab political opposition, they relied on tactics of non-violent resistance channelled from an American scholar through a Serbian youth brigade — but also on marketing tactics borrowed from Silicon Valley.

2.20pm: There is video footage on Bambuser from Karzakan, in Bahrain filmed in the past half hour. There were clashes there last night (see 8.57am).

A reader has sent us an account from Bahrain of gunshots and reports of casualties:

I have just got home to to my compound by a village hotspot/poor Shia neighbourhood) and can hear sporadic gunfire. A friend has just reported trouble along Budaiya highway (big hotspot/poor Shia neighbourhood) with gunshots. There are helicopters flying overhead. and sirens. Now there are so many car horns going off. The shooting in Karzakan last night may inflame. It's alleged that a wedding party was fired on unprovoked with one dead and at least six injured (rumours flying around and depicted on Facebook 'Bahrain Day of Rage' and Twitter). Most office workers in Manama fled around 2pm local time as have been advised that many villages protesting and roads getting blocked off. The protests are meant to be all day. Not sure if anyone will be going to mosque at sundown due to it kicking off now; usually if anything is going to kick off it does then. Distinct impression (Karzakan) security forces are coming down very hard. They have (apparently) already arrested lots of people. Again. This will add to the hundreds already sitting in prison. I expect this is all going to be just a little news item as the protesters are surely going to be quashed as quickly as they rise up. On my way home the local english radio station was playing Irish banjo music and the DJ talking about a swimming competition. I am too frightened to tell you who I am or where I live for fear, rational or otherwise, of being found out.

2.02pm: Al-Jazeera correspondent Imran Khan says the police are using force against people demonstrating in Tehran.



#Iran #25Bahman: Thousands of protesters now marching in Tehran. Police has responded with tear gas. Police are attacking with batons





An opposition website (Farsi link) also says shots have been fired in the air by police, while al-Jazeera reports pepper spray is being used against protesters.

1.58pm: Egypt's ruling military council has called on labour leaders to halt strikes and protests. News that the military was planning such a move first emerged yesterday. The response will be interesting.

1.53pm: Thanks Adam, this is Haroon back again. Some developments from Iran:

•Opposition leader Mir Hussein Mousavi and his wife, Zahra Rahnavard have joined the protesters, according to al-Arabiya's Persian service. However, this contradicts the earlier reports that security forces prevented Mousavi from leaving his house.

• Around 10 people have been arrested near Enghelab square in central Tehran, according to @iran88.

• Metro stations in Imam Hossein square, Enghelab Squre and Vali Asr have been closed down by the government to try to disrupt the protests, according to @StopAhmadi.

• There are reports from Tehran of mobile users complaining their text services are being blocked.

1.36pm: Hello, Adam Gabbatt here with a summary while Haroon has a quick lunch:

• Protests are underway across the middle east, as unrest spreads following the events in Egypt and Tunisia. Demonstrations are continuing in Egypt, while there have been clashes in Iran, Bahrain and Yemen.

• In Iran, hundreds of protesters have gathered in the centre of Tehran, where they have been met by riot police. Today is the Iranian opposition's first attempt in more than a year to hold street protests against the government, with demonstrations also taking place in Isfahan and Shiraz.

• In Yemen, pro-reform demonstrators have reportedly been attacked by government-supporting gangs. Spurred on by events in Egypt, thousands of demonstrators had gathered to protest against the 32-year-rule of Ali Abdullah Saleh, but the protests have become increasingly violent with clashes between Saleh-supporters and critics.

• In Egypt, some 1,000 protesters remain in Tahrir Square despite the military's continuing attempts to clear them. All news organisations have been stopped from broadcasting in the square, while the reopening of Egypt's stock exchange has been delayed. Reports are suggesting that the former president Mubarak has fallen into a coma.

• Police have used rubber bullets and teargas against protesters on Bahrain's "day of rage". In the village of Nuweidrat, 10 people were slightly injured according to witnesses.

1.10pm: Some context for today's action in Iran (by Saeed Kamali Dehghan):

Today marks the Iranian opposition's first attempt in more than a year to hold street protests against the government.

It's not yet clear how successful they will be, but reports from Tehran suggest that despite a heavy security presence, small groups of people have gatheredin Sadeghieh Squyare, Enghelab Square, Kalej junction and Azadi street.

A wave of unrest hit Iran following the disputed presidential election in 2009, but in the ensuing crackdown, dozens of people were killed, hundreds injured and thousands arrested. Since then, the opposition has largely been forced underground or onto the internet, where - despite government efforts to control the web - protesters have been active on social networking websites.

Opposition activists in Iran watched events in Tunisia and Egypt with mixed feelings - inspired and energised, but also frustrated that their own efforts to bring down an autocratic regime did not succeed.

With Iranian media under strict government control, citizen journalists in Iran are once again turning to social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter to get their accounts out of Tehran. (Twitter users are using the #25bahman hashtag). Eyewitnesses told opposition websites that protesters are chanting "Death to dictator" in streets and YouTube videos showed protesters chanting "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) last night on rooftops.

1.00pm: Hundreds of protesters are trying to move into the centre of Tehran, Reuters reports:

Hundreds of demonstrators marched down Azadi (Freedom) Street, a wide boulevard, towards Azadi Square, a traditional rallying point for protests dominated by a huge white marble arch, in central Tehran.

"Hundreds of people are marching towards Azadi and Enghelab streets," one witness said. "Hundreds of riot police are in the area as well but there are no clashes."

Hundreds of marchers also gathered in the central city of Isfahan, witnesses said.

12.55pm: Video has emerged of members of Iran's Basiji militia, in their distinctive clothes and helmets, riding into central Tehran on motorbikes:

-

12.52pm: Although today's Iran protest was initially organised for the capital Tehran, reports suggest that protesters have also taken to the streets in Enghelab Square, in the city of Isfahan, and Namazi Square, in Shiraz.

in Tehran, an eyewitness told BBC Persian TV that there have been clashes between the riot police and protesters in Kalej cross.

Opposition websites report that Abdollah Naseri, a reformist activist and close ally to former president Mohammad Khatami has been arrested.

Iran's semi-official Fars News agency reported last night that the revolutionary guards are claiming western spies are conspiring to ignite an uprising in Iran. Commander Mohammad Reza Naghdi said: "Western intelligence agencies are searching for a mentally challenged person who can set himself on fire in Tehran to trigger developments like those in Egypt and Tunisia."

12.40pm: There are disturbing reports of gangs of government thugs attacking protesters in Yemen. From Reuters:

Government backers armed with broken bottles, daggers and rocks chased down thousands of pro-reform demonstrators in Yemen's capital on Monday, turning unrest inspired by Egypt's uprising increasingly violent. Police who had been trying to keep the sides apart locked several thousand fleeing protesters inside the Sanaa University campus near where they were rallying to stem the bloodshed. Five people were wounded in the melee, an opposition source said. "With our blood, we sacrifice for you Ali!" Saleh supporters chanted in Sanaa before violence erupted. Some of the several hundred Saleh backers who gathered held pictures of the man who has ruled Yemen for 32 years, and they waved Yemeni flags.

Another 12 people were reported hurt south of Sanaa, where police fired shots into the air as hundreds of anti-government demonstrators clashed with Saleh supporters, witnesses said. But police were unable to control the crowds in the agro-industrial town of Taiz, where thousands of protesters had held a night-long rally. The disturbances occurred while Saleh and the main opposition group were preparing for talks that the government hoped would help avert an Egypt-style revolt. They were due to begin within days, an opposition official has said. Human Rights Watch criticised Yemeni police for what they described as unnecessary brutality against demonstrators, including the use of electroshock tasers.

"Without provocation, government security forces brutally beat and tasered peaceful demonstrators on the streets of Sanaa," said Sarah Leah Whitson, the Middle East and North Africa director of the US based rights group.

-

12.35pm: Of course, no sooner does the Turkish president, in Iran, call for governments to listen to the demands of their people, than there are reports of clashes on a Tehran street:

@onlymehdi

Live: Clashes in 4 Rah valiasr with tear gas #iran #25bahman

12.31pm: I mentioned earlier (12pm) that the presence of the Turkish president Abdullah Gul in Tehran could be a restraining influence on the way the Iranian security services deal with today's demonstrations. Well, Gul has used a press conference with his Iranian counterpart to urge (unspecified) Middle East governments to listen to the demands of their people. He said:

The desires of people must be taken into account. In this respect, fundamental reforms must be carried out, whether economic or political.

12.20pm: The former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak fell into a coma on Saturday, according to an Egyptian paper, al-arabiya reports:

Egypt's deposed president, Hosni Mubarak, went into a full coma on Saturday night at his residence in the Red Sea resort of Sharm al-Sheikh, an Egyptian newspaper reported on Monday, quoting well-informed sources. Mubarak and his family moved to Sharm al-Sheikh on Thursday night following his final speech, in which he handed over executive authority to former Vice-President Omar Suleiman, Egypt's al-Masry al-Youm reported.

The same sources said that Mubarak was currently receiving medical treatment but that no decision had yet been made on whether to transfer the 82-year-old former head-of-state to a hospital.

12.11pm: Several metro stations have been closed in central Tehran to try to scupper the march, according to reports, and al-Jazeera says shops have been closed along the planned protest route.

12.00pm: BBC Persian has started its daily broadcast earlier than usual. An eyewitness told the channel that a group of people have gathered in Sadeghieh Square in central Tehran where people are chanting "Death to dictator."

On Twitter, @MikVerbrugge, in Tehran, reports clashes between students:

#iran #25bahman Clashes at Shiraz Azad Uni.Green Students fighting with Basiji Students

The Turkish leader Abdullah Gul is visiting Iran, prompting speculation that there will be lenient treatment of protesters so not as to embarrass Tehran's ally.

11.47am: There is confusion in Iran over whether the government has issued a permit for today's protests. It was reported on Iranian state-sanctioned website that a permit was issued but BBC Persian is saying that a permit has not been issued. To add to the confusion the report on the website, which said a permit had been issued, Aftab News, is no longer accessible.

There is speculation on Twitter that the government may have issued a permit and then revoked it.

11.36am: Iraq can be added to the list of countries where people are protesting today. From the Associated Press:

Hundreds of Iraqis rallied in central Baghdad against corruption and the lack of government services that have plagued this country for years. Many of the demonstrators carried banners that bore the image of a broken red heart, alluding to the fact that the protest took place on Valentine's Day.

Iraqis endure electricity and water shortages after years of warfare, UN sanctions and corruption.

The gatherings in Iraq have been small in scale, although organizers are promising a much larger event on February 25. The Iraqis are calling for government reforms and more jobs.

11.26am: Some developments in Egypt:

• All news organisations have now been stopped from broadcasting in Egypt's Tahrir Square, al-Jazeera reports (see 10.06am).

• Despite this fact al-Jazeera says there are around 1,000 protesters chanting anti-police slogans. That is in response to police officers who marched through Tahrir Square earlier chanting "We and the people are one." It was the police who tried to enforce the crackdown on protesters in the early days of the demonstrations.

• The reopening of Egypt's stock exchange has been delayed again. A bourse official said it remain closed until stability returns to the economy and the financial sector, Reuters reports. He initially said it would reopen on Sunday but then said it would take place on an unspecified date.

• Hundreds of Egyptian state employees are protesting in Cairo to demand better pay and conditions, the Associated Press reports. Public transport workers are demonstrating to demand better pay outside the Nile-side TV and state radio building. Several hundred protesters from the state Youth and Sports Organisation protested in Tahrir Square with similar demands. And the Central Bank of Egypt has ordered the closure of banks across the country because of a strike by employees of the National Bank, the largest state bank.

• There is a demonstration outside the supreme council of antiquities against corruption within the organisation. The supreme council of antiquities announced over the weekend that 18 priceless artefacts had been stolen from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, including two gilded statues of King Tutankhamun.

-

11.05am: The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights has sent an account of today's events in Nuweidrat and some pictures, including one of an injured protester.

Demonstrators began after the morning prayer in a peaceful demonstration in Nuweidrat (5am ) Demonstrators raised the flag of Bahrain and demanded investigation of violations of human rights. Security forces fired rubber bullets and tears gas on the demonstrators (6.45am). The demonstrators were dispersed and after about 15 minutes they gathered again in a peaceful demonstration. Security forces fired rubber bullets and tear gas again (with the presence of the foreign press). Many of the demonstrators were injured, and one demonstrator may have been moved to hospital.

-

10.52am: The Iranian security apparatus is out In force on the streets of Tehran already in anticipation of the planned opposition rally, Reuters reports.

"There are dozens of police and security forces in the Vali-ye Asr Avenue ... they have blocked entrances of metro stations in the area," a witness told Reuters by telephone, referring to a large thoroughfare that cuts through Tehran. Another witness said police cars with windows covered by black curtains were parked near Tehran's notorious Evin prison. Mir Hussein Mousavi's website Kaleme said security forces had set up a road block, refusing access to the opposition leader's residence in southern Tehran. It said both mobile and landline telephone communications with Mousavi's house were also cut.

"It seems these newly-set restrictions are aimed at preventing Mousavi and his wife (Zahra Rahnavard) from attending the rally," Kaleme said. Plain-clothes police stopped Rahnavard leaving the house, another opposition website reported.... Authorities deny rigging the 2009 election and accuse opposition leaders of being part of a Western plot to overthrow the Islamic system. "They are incapable of doing a damn thing," the hardline Kayhan newspaper quoted Intelligence Minister Heidar Moslehi as saying, echoing words used by revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to refer to the United States. The opposition is "guided by Iran's enemies abroad", Moslehi said.

10.34am: Proof of the strength protesters in the Middle East are deriving from events in Tunisia and Egypt can be derived from an appeal to leading Egyptian dissident Wael Ghonim to support the green movement in Iran. He appeared last week wearing a green wristband, which was interpreted as a sign of solidarity with the Iranian opposition. An open letter to Ghonim on the "A struggle for freedom" blog reads:

Dear Wael Ghonim, Many Iranians, specially activist of the Green Movement, wish that you write an statement in support of the Green Movement. Today, many of Iranians want to participate on a demonstration in support of democratic movements in north Africa, e.g. Egypt. This could also cause a rebirth of the Green Movement. Iranian government refused permission to hold a rally on February 14. By writing a statement, you not only could make the Iranian people happy, you would also make it harder for the Iranian regime to suppress the demonstrations. The worldwide press is watching Egypt. Your words mean a lot to us. best wishes,

one Iranian who is wishing freedom for his country

10.26am: Crowdvoice.org has pictures of teargas being used in Bahrain today and of injured protesters. It is a good resource for photos and videos of protests as well as links to news stories and reports (thanks to @orlandobeetle in the comments section for the tip-off).

10.10am: The Guardian's Middle East editor, Ian Black, has provided some interesting analysis of the situation in Bahrain and the prospects of the protests escalating:



Bahrain's Day of Rage today is unlikely to take on the dimensions of the unrest in Cairo, but it will be closely watched to see if the small island state lives up to its reputation for being the odd man out in the Gulf. It is not the first time that riot police have fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesting youths in villages around Manama but the mood has sharpened since the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt. Twitter and Facebook have again been getting out the crowds and a solidarity demonstration is planned by Bahraini exiles in London. Another sign that trouble is expected is a flurry of pre-emptive announcements from the government – smoothly distributed by expensive western PR firms. Bahrain's distinction is that the Sunni Al-Khalifa dynasty rules over an often restive Shia majority that has long complained about discrimination for jobs and housing. Precise figures are not available but the population has grown from 750,000 to more than 1 million in a few years while the number of Shias in senior jobs has decreased. Large numbers of non-Bahraini Sunnis have been naturalised. This sectarian division puts Bahrain on a major regional fault line, with Iran glowering across the Gulf at a state which is also home to the US 5th fleet. Bahrain does have political pressure valves – an elected lower house of parliament in which Shia are represented even if the final say rests with King Hamad. Parliament's attempts to investigate a high-level real-estate scandal involving the royal family caused nervousness last year. The prime minister, the king's uncle, has been in power for the entire 40 year-period since independence from Britain. Attention in recent months has focused on the arrest, detention and trial of 23 opposition activists who were rounded up during a sudden crackdown last summer, as well as allegations that they were tortured in custody.

The authorities have stepped in with pre-emptive concessions to try to defuse tensions and deflect criticism. Talks began on Sunday about loosening state control of the media. Last week the government donated BD1,000 ($2,660) to every family after increasing food subsidies earlier this month.

10.06am: Al-Jazeera is reporting that the military is trying to stop the media broadcasting from Tahrir Square. The news organisation is interpreting it as an effort to remove the focus on the protests in central plaza in order to get the demonstrators to move on. But even if there is not something more sinister behind the move it is hardly an encouraging sign of what life under military rule will be like.

9.59am: More clashes have been reported in Yemen, on a fourth consecutive day of protests in the country. From Reuters:

Hundreds of anti-government demonstrators clashed with supporters of Yemen's president on Monday south of the capital, with both sides hurling rocks as protests escalated in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula state.

Witnesses said police had fired shots into the air but were unable to control the crowds in the industrial town of Taiz, while in Sanaa protesters inspired by an uprising in Egypt vowed to march to police intelligence headquarters.

"Hey Ali, get out, get out," anti-government protesters shouted at Sanaa University, referring to President Ali Abdullah Saleh, a U.S. ally against al Qaeda's resurgent Yemen-based wing. "There is no solution except to leave."

Police stood between around 500 anti-government protesters and a rival group of around 100 supporters of Saleh at Sanaa University, a frequent launchpad for demonstrations, to prevent skirmishes.

9.57am: Iranian opposition leader Mir Hussein Mousavi has been placed under house arrest and had his phone line cut, according to his website (link is in Farsi). The measures have clearly been taken to prevent him taking part in opposition protests planned for later today.

9.44am: For some useful background on Bahrain, Amnesty International published a report on Friday in which it detailed "a significant deterioration in the human rights situation" (link to pdf) in the country.

The report focuses on the arrest, detention and trial of 23 political opposition activists, as well as allegations that they were tortured in custody. Philip Luther, deputy director of Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Programme, said:



Bahrain is at a crossroads when it comes to human rights. Many of the advances made during the last ten years are in danger of being eroded by the increasing reports of torture and other ill-treatment against political activists held in prison and the government's failure to ensure they are independently investigated.

9.31am: Video has been emerged of a peaceful protest in Nuweidrat, in Bahrain, this morning where police used teargas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds (see 8.57 post, where there is also footage of police cracking down on protesters in Karzakan).

-

9.17am: Mubarak's two sons almost came to blows on Thursday when the former Egyptian president gave his final speech in an effort to stay in power, according to a state-owned paper, Reuters reports.

Al-Akhbar said Alaa Mubarak accused his younger brother Gamal, who had held a senior position in the ruling party, of having ruined the 82-year-old leader's final days in office through promoting his business friends in political life.

Alaa reportedly said this had turned Egyptians against their father, who had been in power since 1981.

"You ruined the country when you opened the way to your friends and this is the result. Instead of your father being honoured at the end of his life you helped to spoil his image in this manner," the daily quoted him as saying.

The newspaper did not give its sources, simply saying it "learned" of the details. There was no way to immediately confirm the report.

It said the argument took place in the presidential palace in Cairo while Mubarak was recording his final speech, which he hoped would persuade protesters to stand down and give promised reforms a chance during Mubarak's last months in office.

It said senior officials had to intervene to separate them.

Gamal Mubarak, 47, who spent 11 years working at Bank of America in Cairo and London, gained considerable influence in government after Mubarak appointed him head of the ruling National Democratic Party's (NDP) policy committee in 2002.

Analysts say he eased the way of business friends to senior positions in the NDP and into the cabinet of Ahmed Nazif, the prime minister sacked by Mubarak several days after massive protests broke out in Egypt on January 25.

9.09am: The 19-year-old state of emergency in Algeria will end within days, foreign minister Mourad Medelci said. There were running battles between police officers and about 2,000 demonstrators in Algiers on Saturday. Officials said that 400 were arrested by police – who vastly outnumbered them. Most were then released. Reuters reports:

A state of emergency has been in force in Algeria since 1992 and the government has come under pressure to ditch emergency laws following uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia.

"In the coming days, we will talk about it as if it was a thing of the past," Medelci told the French radio station Europe 1 in an interview.

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika said earlier this month the state of emergency would be lifted in the very near future.

8.57am: At least 14 people have been injured in clashes on Bahrain's "Day of Rage" Reuters reports:

Police clashed late on Sunday with residents in Karzakan village, where security forces regularly skirmish with Shia youths, and one protester was injured, witnesses said. Police said three officers were hurt.

In the village of Nuweidrat, police used teargas and rubber bullets on Monday to disperse a crowd demanding the release of Shia detainees, witnesses said, adding that 10 people were slightly injured.

"There were 2,000 sitting in the street voicing their demands when police started firing," 24-year-old Kamel told Reuters, declining to give his full name. Nearby, streets were littered with teargas canisters and rubber bullets.

The scene was different in Manama, where government supporters honked car horns and waved Bahraini flags to celebrate the 10th anniversary of a national charter introduced after unrest in the 1990s.

-

8.53am: After scuffles yesterday, when soldiers tried to clear demonstrators out of Tahrir Square, the military has delivered an ultimatum to protesters today to leave the central plaza that formed the heart of the revolution or face arrest:

We have half an hour left, we are cordoned by military police," protester Yahya Saqr told Reuters. "We are discussing what to do now," he said, adding that a senior officer "told us we have one hour to empty the square or we will be arrested."

8.49am: The wave of protests inspired by events in Tunisia and Egypt show no signs of dissipating.

Activists in Iran are planning to go ahead with a banned rally in central Tehran today in defiance of warnings by the regime. Iranian leaders have vowed to deal with protesters from the opposition Green movement severely, even though Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government welcomed the ousting of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt.

There have been clashes in Bahrain as protesters stage their own "day of rage". Shia citizens ruled by a Sunni minority are unhappy about their lack of representation. In a bid to stave off protests King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, trying to defuse the tension, said he would give 1,000 dinars (£1,650) to each local family, and the government has indicated that it may free minors arrested under a security crackdown last year.



There have been demonstrations in Yemen for the past three days. Witnesses in the capital, Sana'a, said several protesters were injured and 23 were detained by police in clashes yesterday.

Despite the ousting of Mubarak, tensions continue in Egypt over the military's plan to rule by martial law until elections are held. While the military's move has been welcomed by some, other pro-democracy protesters are alarmed by the failure to agree to a civilian-led interim government. The army is expected to issue a communique today cracking down on those creating "chaos and disorder" as well as effectively banning strikes.