Actually I did see the start of it. From outside the cham palace hotel Damascus. The protesters were marching up towards the 4 seasons hotel where the OPCW teams have formerly stayed. Initially the protests were well ordered. Subsequently our inhouse security determined it was time to evacuate. After that I have no first hand knowledge of subsequent events, other than sporadic emails from former Syrian colleagues. The entire time I was there Damascus day or night was a far safer place for a solitary person than London.