they were desperate to tell the monitors about the government cra crackdown there. opposition activists say regime forces have surrounded the city for three days and that power and water have been cut. this was said to be the scene in the city. they cannot verify the images, but they are said to be of an opposition rally in support of military defectors known as the free syrian army. a message was delivered to bashar al assad during a visit to lebanon. today i say again to the president of syria, stop the violence. stop killing your own people. the path of repression is a dead end. meanwhile, syrian media report al assad said he s granting amnesty for the crimes. it s the top of the hour. the cnn newsroom starts all over again right now. we re following two major developments in the cruise ship disaster on the italian coast. two americans are among the missing. that s according to to the state department. 120 were reportedly on the ship. only 118 are accounted for. da