>> well, the heaviest is in douma itself. douma is a suburb to the northeast of the capitol itself, roughly perhaps about half an hour's drive from the central town, probably the explosion going on there is being heard in large parts of city. it has been a center of opposition activity in the past. one of the areas where the government forces were cleared out in late january when they began with the damascus suburbs in this drive to reimpose stale control throughout the country along the borders and elsewhere. now it could be that for symbolic reasons the opposition itself may have chosen to show some activity there in order to pro vehicle the government. but certainly there is defiance still there in those suburbs, in parts of damascus and many other parts of the country. >> jim muir, thank you very much. now here in the u.k. salvage experts are trying to remove about 24,000 liters of fuel in north wales which ran aground on tuesday. the environment agency says it has leeched a small amount of oil into surrounding areas. sea

. >> reporter: a crowd of worshipers leaving the douma's mosque after friday prayers became in the space of a few minutes and a few yards a tsunami of protesters. ecstatic to be back in the streets of this opposition stronghold, a suburb of damascus. this demonstration was one of the biggest and loudest of the hundreds that erupted across the country today. the protesters demands couldn't be clearer. they want to see the end of president bashar al-assad's regime, especially after the pounding this town has taken from the syrian military. it was less than a week ago that syrian tanks took out the side of that building. today it's a spectator gallery. can't or don't feel quite safe enough yet. after all, the army has only pulled back to the edge of town and everyone is afraid the cease-fire won't hold. activists don't feel safe enough either, to be identified on television even though for them there's been a red letter day. >> it is fantastic today. today we feel free. >> reporter: what are you going to do next? >> we'll continue. we will never stop. >> reporter: in the back streets member

. >> more government shellings in the damascus suburb of douma. under the plan, heavy weapons should have been put away weeks ago. of ask the tanks should also gone back to barracks. activists says the regime has killed more than 460 people since the observers arriving. in hama, a protest has gunfire rings out. the regime is a contravention. the americans are up egg the rhetoric. the united states' patience is exhausted and we are going to be watching very carefully to determine if this observer mission is having the impact that we all hope it would even if our expectations were low. >> but there is another fight to the story. the regime accuses what it calls armed terrorists groups of carrying out a string of assassinations and other attacks. it's documented more than 1,300 violations. rebel fighters are still activ on the ground like here over in the east. the annan plan calls for them to stand down too. up and in the north, the rebels reached syrian army for a new unit. that is also in contravention of the annan plan. crucially, russia is backi

there was a remarkable scene today in douma outside damascus. four u.n. officials in blue hats sent to observe a cease-fire were besieged by thousands begging for international help. and human rights activists say assad's forces killed dozens today in the town of hama just hours after the u.n. observers left that town. they're having the same medical procedure, so why are some patients paying so much more than others? that's next. for many, nexium helps relieve heartburn symptoms caused by acid reflux disease. osteoporosis-related bone fractures and low magnesium levels have been seen with nexium. possible side effects include headache, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. other serious stomach conditions may still exist. talk to your doctor about nexium. that make kids happy. and even fewer that make moms happy too. with wholesome noodles and bite sized chicken, nothing brings you together like chicken noodle soup from campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. you know who you are. you can part a crowd, without saying a word. you have yet to master the quiet s

continued in syria today with amateur video apparently showing government troops sweeping into the city of douma just two days after the arrival of u.n. observers. the assad regime is condemning u.n. secretary-general moon for saying the gflt is to blame for repeated cease-fire i have laitions. they'r symbols of iraq's insecurity and division, but today iraqi's security forces began demolishing concrete blast walls in baghdad. they were first put up after the 2003 invasion and multiplied at the height of the country's sectarian violence. still ahead, he helped occupy the brooklyn bridge. now the d.a. has subpoenaed his tweets. that story is next. one thing you can depend on is that these will come together. delicious and wholesome. some combinations were just meant to be. tomato soup from campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. nighttime is the worst. i can't breathe and forget sleeping. good mornings? not likely! i've tried the pills the sprays even some home remedies. then i tried something new. [ male announcer ] drug-free breathe right nasal strips. [ woman ] you just put it on and ... am

amateur video from douma showed explosions as well as streets filled with rubble and vehicles ablaze. activists said government troops kept up the fire despite a visit by u.n. observers. elsewhere, the opposition reported rocket fire killed at least a dozen people in the city of hama. nato reported the deaths of four troops in afghanistan today, bringing the month's toll for the alliance to 31. two were killed in separate attacks in the south. the others died of non-battle injuries. for the year, 122 coalition members have lost their lives in afghanistan. a u.s. military judge has refused the request by army private bradley manning's defense to have the charges against him thrown out in the wikileaks case. he's accused of transmitting hundreds of thousands of u.s. government documents to the anti-secrecy website. today's ruling came at a pre- trial hearing at fort meade, maryland. manning faces a court-martial in september. those are some of the day's major stories. now, back to jeff. >> brown: and we turn to the still unfolding story of wal- mart and allegations of bribery in mexico.

amateur video from douma showed explosions as well as streets filled with rubble and vehicles ablaze. activists said government troops kept up the fire despite a visit by u.n. observers. elsewhere, the opposition reported rocket fire killed at least a dozen people in the city of hama. nato reported the deaths of four troops in afghanistan today, bringing the month's toll for the alliance to 31. two were killed in separate attacks in the south. the others died of non-battle injuries. for the year, 122 coalition members have lost their lives in afghanistan. a u.s. military judge has refused the request by army private bradley manning's defense to have the charges against him thrown out in the wikileaks case. he's accused of transmitting hundreds of thousands of u.s. government documents to the anti-secrecy website. today's ruling came at a pre- trial hearing at fort meade, maryland. manning faces a court-martial in september. those are some of the day's major stories. now, back to jeff. >> brown: and we turn to the still unfolding story of wal- mart and allegations of bribery in mexico.

activists said a government assault on douma, a suburb of damascus, was one of the fiercest yet. all of this, as united nations peace envoy kofi annan said he expects the shooting to stop by april 12. he addressed the u.n. general assembly via video link from geneva. >> we must silence the tanks, helicopters, motors, guns and stop all other forms of violence too. sexual abuse, torture, executions, abductions, destruction of homes, forced displacement, and other abuses including on children. >> woodruff: the annan plan calls for syrian forces to withdraw from cities and towns by april 10. a full cessation of violence would follow within 48 hours. syrian officials insisted they have begun withdrawals from the provinces of daraa and idlib and the resort town of zabadani. but the opposition said in fact, government troops continue to man checkpoints in those cities. back at the u.n., secretary general ban ki-moon appealed to syrian president bashar al-assad to show vision and leadership. >> the situation on the ground continues to deteriorate. violence should have stopped months ago.

there are 92 members of the communist party in the russian douma. there's only 70 to 80 in the u.s.ess, that would be a big improvement over the russian standard. i think he was probably trying to say something else. i can't imagine what it was ch then he got stuck, said what he said and now, he took a barrage of criticism and the way our modern outrage is constructed, people don't back away from saying a foolish thing. they don't apologize when they safely could, they double down because one person's outrage is another's fund raising opportunity. >> it's pretty shocking when you think about it because it sounds so much like mccarthyism in the early '50s. have you now or ever been a member of the communist party. pretty outrageous. >> it's like the ghost of joe mccarthy is coming back to the house of representatives. sorry, my allergies are acting up today. but you know x i work on capitol hill. i know many of the members that belong to the house progressive caucus and they fight for a fair economy. for jobs, young people, for housing. there's nothing communist about the congression