Muhammed Muheisen / AP

Syrian rebels attend a training session in Maaret Ikhwan, near Idlib, Syria, Dec. 17, 2012.

Muhammed Muheisen / AP

Syrian rebel fighter Ibrahim Iaaa, 20, a former construction worker, poses for a picture after a training session in Maaret Ikhwan, near Idlib, Syria, Dec. 17.

By Karin Laub
Associated Press

MAARET MISREEN, Syria -- The new Syrian rebel chief said he's been moving between safe houses since taking up command, even changing quarters twice in one night when he feared regime spies.

Grappling with largely untrained and at times undisciplined fighters, Salim Idris said in an interview that he is trying to turn local militias into a united force of some 120,000 men for a final push against President Bashar Assad.

The challenges keep him awake at night, said Idris, a former general who defected from the Syrian army five months ago and was chosen as rebel chief of staff in a meeting of several hundred field commanders this month in Turkey.

Idris is "very afraid" a cornered Assad might unleash chemical weapons on the fighters. He said old friends of his still in the regime have warned him that the military, which already fired several Scuds, is training more ready-to-fire missiles on rebel strongholds in Syria's northwest. Full story…

EDITOR'S NOTE: All images made available to NBC News on Dec. 19.

Muhammed Muheisen / AP

Syrian rebels listen to their trainer on how to use a rocket-propelled grenade launcher in Maaret Ikhwan, near Idlib, Syria, Dec. 17.

Muhammed Muheisen / AP

A Syrian rebel prepares for a video interview at headquarters in Maaret Ikhwan, near Idlib, Syria, Dec. 12.

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Nasser Nasser / AP

Egyptian protesters push army soldiers standing guard in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt, Dec. 9.

Petr David Josek / AP

Protesters chant slogans during a demonstration in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt, Dec. 9. E

Petr David Josek / AP

Protesters cahnt slogans during a demonstration in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt, Dec. 9.

Egypt's liberal opposition continued their protests Sunday, keeping up the momentum of its street campaign after President Mohammed Morsi made a partial concession but refused its main demand that he rescind a draft constitution going to a referendum on Dec. 15. Morsi annulled most of the controversial orders that gave him sweeping powers without judicial review. The opposition stopped short of advocating a boycott or a “no” just one week before voting begins, but called for another rally on Tuesday.

Related: 

• Egypt's opposition rejects constitutional referendum
• Egypt's Morsi annuls orders giving him sweeping powers
• Egypt's military returns to the political fray

Amr Abdallah Dalsh / Reuters

Anti-Morsi protesters shout slogans during a protest in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Dec. 4, 2012.

Maya Alleruzzo / AP

An Egyptian woman holds a national flag as she listens to speakers, not pictured, in Tahrir Square in Cairo, Dec. 4.

Reuters reports — Egyptian police battled thousands of protesters outside President Mohamed Morsi's palace in Cairo on Tuesday, prompting the Islamist leader to leave the building, presidency sources said.

Officers fired teargas at up to 10,000 demonstrators angered by Morsi's drive to hold a referendum on a new constitution on December 15. Some broke through police lines around his palace and protested next to the perimeter wall.

The crowds had gathered nearby in what organizers had dubbed "last warning" protests against Morsi, who infuriated opponents with a November 22 decree that expanded his powers. "The people want the downfall of the regime," the demonstrators chanted.

"The president left the palace," a presidential source, who declined to be named, told Reuters. A security source at the presidency also said the president had departed. Full story…

Asmaa Waguih / Reuters

A protester carries a shield belonging to a riot police member who ran away as protesters clash briefly with riot police during a protest in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Dec. 4

Mohamed Abd El Ghany / Reuters

A woman stands near barbed wire in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Dec. 4.

Amr Abdallah Dalsh / Reuters

An anti-Morsi protester sprays paint reading "Control by Revolution" on a riot police vehicle during clashes in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Dec. 4.

Maya Alleruzzo / AP

Fireworks burst over Tahrir Square as protesters gather in Cairo, Dec. 4.

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Narciso Contreras / AP

Night falls on a Syrian rebel-controlled area as destroyed buildings, including Dar Al-Shifa hospital, are seen on Sa'ar street after airstrikes targeted the area last week, killing dozens in Aleppo, Syria.

Narciso Contreras / AP

Men warm themselves by a fire in a Syrian rebel controlled area in where residents are trying to get back to their daily lives after months of heavy fighting in Aleppo, Syria.

Narciso Contreras / AP

On Sa'ar street in Aleppo, an apartment is illuminated by fire used to keep warm.

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Slideshow: Syria uprising

Story: Airport road reopens but Internet still cut

Ahmed Jadallah / Reuters

Anti-Morsi protesters chant anti-government and anti-Muslim Brotherhood slogans as they gather at Tahrir Square in Cairo Nov. 27.

Khalil Hamra / AP

Egyptian security forces arrest a protester during clashes near Tahrir square in Cairo, Nov. 27, 2012.

Ahmed Jadallah / Reuters

Anti-Morsi protesters carry a wounded man away from tear gas during clashes with riot police at Tahrir square in Cairo, Nov. 27.

Andre Pain / EPA

Protesters against President Mohammed Morsi's decree gather at Tahrir Square in Cairo on Nov. 27.

Khaled Elfiqi / EPA

Egyptian protesters shout slogans against President Mohammed Morsi, during a rally against his decree, in Tahrir square, Cairo, Nov. 27.

Ahmed Jadallah / Reuters

Anti-Morsi protesters try to carry a man affected by tear gas during clashes with riot police at Tahrir Square in Cairo, Nov. 27.

Opponents of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi rallied in Cairo's Tahrir Square for a fifth day on Tuesday, stepping up calls to scrap a decree they say threatens Egypt with a new era of autocracy.

Related:

• 'Leave, leave': Egyptians gather in Cairo's Tahrir Square to protest president's decree
• Egypt's Morsi, top judges compromise to defuse soaring tensions over decree
• More photos from Egypt on PhotoBlog

Muhammad Hamed / Reuters

Protesters from the Islamic Action Front and other opposition parties shout slogans during a demonstration following an announcement that Jordan would raise fuel prices, including a hike on cooking gas, after Friday prayers in Amman, Nov. 16, 2012.

Muhammad Hamed / Reuters

Protesters shout slogans during a demonstration in Amman, Nov. 16.

Reuters reports — Thousands of demonstrators chanted the Arab Spring slogan "the people want the downfall of the regime" in Jordan on Friday, although a day billed as the culmination of three days of occasionally violent protests passed off largely in peace.

The staunch U.S. ally has so far largely avoided the street unrest that has swept across the Middle East over the past two years, but a decision this week to raise fuel prices led to demonstrations that raised the specter of long-term instability.

The mainly urban Muslim Brotherhood announced on Friday it was joining the protests, lending the voice of the country's largest opposition movement to demonstrations which had previously mainly been focused on rural and tribal areas. Full story…

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Mohamad Rafaya / EPA

Anti-riot policemen, left, clash with Jordanian demonstrators during a protest in Amman, Jordan, Nov. 16.

Muhammad Hamed / Reuters

Protesters from the Islamic Action Front and other opposition parties shout slogans during a demonstration following an announcement that Jordan would raise fuel prices, including a hike on cooking gas, after Friday prayers in Amman, Nov. 16.

Mohammad Hannon / AP

Protesters at al Baqaa Palestinian Refugee Camp chant anti-king Abdullah slogans during a demonstration following an announcement of raising fuel prices, including a hike on cooking gas, in Baqaa, Jordan, Nov. 15.

Gaia Anderson / AP

Libyans celebrate one year since the country declared liberation from former dictator Muammar Gaddafi, at Martyrs Square in Tripoli, Libya, Oct. 23, 2012.

Gaia Anderson / AP

Libyans celebrate one year since the country declared liberation from former dictator Muammar Gaddafi, at Martyrs Square in Tripoli, Libya, Oct. 23.

Reuters reports — The Libyan army and allied militias have seized control of strategic buildings in the former Gaddafi stronghold of Bani Walid, a military spokesman said on Tuesday, as Libya marked the first anniversary of its "liberation" from Muammar Gaddafi.

Thousands have fled the violence in the isolated hilltop town, which was one of the last to surrender to rebels last year, and has been at the center of a bloody standoff this month between rival militias whose ferocity has underscored the extent of instability in the North African country.

Slideshow: The uprising against Gadhafi

Colonel Ali al-Shekhili said the army, which was backed by a group of militias known as "Libya's Shield" who are loyal to the defense ministry, had pushed into the center of Bani Walid some 170 km (105 miles) south of Tripoli. Full story…

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Gaia Anderson / AP

Libyans celebrate one year since the country declared liberation from former dictator Muammar Gaddafi, at Martyrs Square in Tripoli, Libya, Oct. 23.

EPA

Libyan government fighters prepare ammunition before an advance towards the entrance to the town of Bani Walid, Libya, Oct. 23. Bani Walid is witnessing clashes between the army and some loyalists of the former Gaddafi regime. The Libyan army has seized most of the south-eastern town of Bani Walid, where it is pursuing a campaign against rogue militias, according to media reports from Oct. 22. The Libyan army launched a massive-scale attack on Bani Walid on Oct. 20 after a siege of more than two weeks.

EPA

Libyan government fighters advance towards the town of Bani Walid, Libya, Oct. 23.

Hasan Jamali / AP

A Bahraini anti-government protester gestures toward riot police, unseen, as she covers her face against tear gas in the narrow market streets of the capital of Manama, Bahrain, Oct. 12, 2012.

Reuters reports — Police in Bahrain fired teargas and stun grenades to disperse hundreds of stone-throwing anti-government protesters marching in the old market area of central Manama on Friday, witnesses said.

About 10 people were arrested, they said.

Thousands took part in a second march along a stretch of highway outside the capital Manama, which passed without incident, witnesses said. This one was permitted by the authorities, unlike the march in central Manama.

The main opposition bloc al-Wefaq organized the larger march, under the slogan "Stop the shedding of our blood; we will not give up our demands."

Hasan Jamali / AP

A masked Bahraini anti-government protester stands in clouds of tear gas fired by riot police during clashes after police dispersed a march through narrow market streets of the capital of Manama, Bahrain, Oct. 12.

Mazen Mahdi / EPA

Bahraini anti-riot policemen detain a man as opposition protesters attempt to march in the old market place of Manama, Oct. 12.

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Hasan Jamali / AP

Riot police watch for Bahraini anti-government protesters, unseen, near tire fires set by protesters in Sanabis, Bahrain, Oct. 5, 2012. Riot police used water cannons and tear gas on Friday to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters trying to reach a heavily guarded site that was once the hub of their uprising.

Associated Press reports — Riot police in Bahrain used water cannons and tear gas on Friday to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters trying to reach a heavily guarded site that was once the hub of their uprising.

The demonstrators marched toward Pearl Square in Bahrain's capital, Manama, after a funeral procession for a protester who died in custody. The government said the man died of a blood disease.

An Associated Press photographer said the demonstrators hurled firebombs and rocks at troops about 700 meters from Pearl Square, where crowds gathered in Feb. 2011 as the Arab Spring-inspired uprising erupted in the Gulf nation.

Bahrain's majority Shiites seek greater rights in the Sunni-ruled kingdom, which is home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet. At least 50 people have died in nearly 20 months of unrest.

Dozens of opposition leaders have been jailed, including human rights activist Nabeel Rajab whose family said he began a hunger strike Friday.

Rajab was temporarily freed from prison this week to attend his mother's funeral, but the furlough was cut short after he delivered a speech urging for protests to continue.

Learn more about Bahrain

Hasan Jamali / AP

Bahraini anti-government protesters throw petrol bombs at a police water cannon truck during clashes with riot police in Sanabis, Bahrain, Oct. 5.

Hasan Jamali / AP

Bahraini anti-government protesters throw bottles of paint and petrol bombs at a police water cannon truck during clashes in Sanabis, Bahrain, Oct. 5.

Hasan Jamali / AP

Bahraini anti-government protesters carry crates of homemade paint and petrol bombs into clashes with riot police in Sanabis, Bahrain, Oct. 5.

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