Syria's 'bloodiest day' leaves scores dead

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2011/11/2011111585457536920.html

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Tuesday that 27 civilians were shot dead by security forces while 34 soldiers and 12 suspected army deserters were killed in clashes.

When soldiers are taking casualties it's not a matter of teenagers throwing rocks at police. That's heavey exchange of fire and explosives. Also, I'm not clear by what is meant by "army deserters", though it sounds like they would be opposing the regime. That in itself is significant.

Russia still opposes any sanctions against the Syrian regime, citing the need for dialogue.

This is also significant:

Meanwhile, the Jordan's King Abdullah called for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down in the interest of the Syrian people.
"I believe, if I were in his shoes, I would step down," Abdullah said on Monday. "I would step down and make sure whoever comes behind me has the ability to change the status quo that we're seeing."

This might be the start of the final cycle, usually the bloodiest.