Syria: Dozens dead in bloodiest day of protests

[Nonynon]

Amnesty International said at least 88 people were killed in unrest which swept the country, mainly from bullet wounds but also from inhaling tear gas. Many more were wounded and around 20 were still missing, activist Ammar Qurabi said.

It was not possible to independently confirm the figures.


"What today proves beyond question is that Syria is the most repressive regime in the Middle East and Assad is the worst dictator," the British Telegraph quoted one activist as saying.

"The people marched peacefully and they were shot in their scores. It is a massacre, a Good Friday Massacre, and a war crime."

The White House on Friday urged the Syrian government to stop its violence against demonstrators and called on Damascus to follow through on promised reforms.

White House spokesman Jay Carney, speaking to reporters as President Barack Obama flew back to Washington from California, said, "We deplore the use of violence."

He called on the Syrian government to "cease and desist in the use of violence against protesters" and to follow through on promised reforms.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague condemned the "unacceptable" killing of demonstrators in Syria on Friday and called for the country's emergency law to be lifted in practice.



"I am extremely concerned by the reports of deaths and casualties across Syria," Hague said in a statement.



"I condemn the unacceptable killing of demonstrators by the Syrian security forces. I call on the Syrian security forces to exercise restraint instead of repression, and on the Syrian authorities to respect the Syrian people's right to peaceful protest."



"The Syrian government should address the legitimate demands of the Syrian people," Hague said.



"Political reforms should be brought forward and implemented without delay. The emergency law should be lifted in practice, not just in word."


'Authorities failed seriousness test'

Tens of thousands of people had taken to the streets of cities across Syria and chanted for the "overthrow of the regime", reflecting the hardening of demands which initially focused on reforms and greater freedoms.

The protests went ahead despite Assad's lifting of the state of emergency the day before. Ending the hated emergency rule, in place since the Baath Party seized power 48 years ago, was a central demand of demonstrators, who also seek the release of political prisoners and dismantling of the security services.

"This was the first test of the seriousness of authorities (towards reform) and they have failed," Qurabi said.

Before Friday's violence rights groups had said more than 220 people had been killed in the unrest which broke out on March 18 in the southern city of Deraa.

As in the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions that ousted Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and Hosni Mubarak, citizens are rebelling against both a lack of freedom and opportunity and security forces' impunity and corruption that has enriched the elite while one-third of Syrians live below the poverty line.

In the first joint statement since the protests broke out, activists coordinating the demonstrations on Friday demanded the abolition of the Baath Party monopoly on power and the establishment of a democratic political system.

"All prisoners of conscience must be freed. The existing security apparatus has to be dismantled and replaced by one with specific jurisdiction and which operates according to law," they said in the statement, which was sent to Reuters.

Aided by his family and a pervasive security apparatus, Assad, 45, has absolute power in Syria.

Protests across country

Protests swept the country of 20 million people, from the Mediterranean city of Banias to the eastern towns of Deir al-Zor and Qamishli. In Damascus, security forces fired teargas to disperse 2,000 protesters in the district of Midan.

In the city of Hama, where Assad's father ruthlessly crushed an armed Islamist uprising nearly 30 years ago, a witness said security forces opened fire to prevent protesters reaching the Baath Party headquarters.

"We saw two snipers on the building. None of us had weapons. There are casualties, possibly two dead," said the witness.

Witnesses said security forces also shot at demonstrators in the Damascus district of Barzeh, the central city of Homs, the Damascus suburb of Douma, and on protesters heading for the city of Deraa, where Syria's uprising first broke out five weeks ago.

Al-Jazeera showed footage of three corpses, wrapped in white burial shrouds, which it said were from the eastern Damascus suburb of Zamalka.

Ahead of the main weekly prayers on Friday, which have often turned out to be launch pads for major demonstrations, the army deployed in Homs and police put up checkpoints across Damascus, apparently trying to prevent protests sweeping in from suburbs.

After prayers finished in Deraa, several thousand protesters gathered chanting anti-Assad slogans. "The Syrian people will not be subjugated. Go away doctor (Assad). We will trample on you and your slaughterous regime," they shouted.

Assad's conciliatory move to lift the state of emergency followed a familiar pattern since the unrest began a month ago: pledges of reform are made before Friday when demonstrations are the strongest, usually followed by an intense crackdown.

Activists said some funerals for those killed on Friday took place in Damascus suburbs in the evening. Funerals have been another platform for protesters in recent weeks and security forces have opened fire when mourners started demonstrating.

The authorities have blamed armed groups, infiltrators and Sunni Muslim militant organizations for provoking violence at demonstrations by firing on civilians and security forces.

Western and other Arab countries have mostly muted their criticism of the killings in Syria for fear of destabilizing the country, which plays a strategic role in many of the conflicts in the Middle East.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4059863,00.html

I don't think Assad can get out of this anymore. Hopefully the Muslim brotherhood will get minimal power in the new Syria.

Right now there are shootings in the funerals that got atleast 6 new dead protestors (or should we call them rebels?). Dont have an english source yet but heres my hebrew one:
http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4059922,00.html

 

[Nonynon]

 

[ejazr]

I wonder if Obama will try to intervene in Syria like they have done in Libya. The only disadvantage is that Syria doesn't have any oil as compared to Libya. But if the US is seriouly conernced with spreading Democratic govt.s then getting rid of Assad would rank in priority with Gaddafi. And unlike removing Mubarak both Israel and GCC countries would be happy with the removal of Assad in Syria.

 

[Yusuf]

I really doubt that ejaz. Even in Libya the feeling is that US involvement is half hearted. I doubt they will stretch themselves so far, though they will support anyone else doing that.

 

[Nonynon]

I wonder if Obama will try to intervene in Syria like they have done in Libya. The only disadvantage is that Syria doesn't have any oil as compared to Libya. But if the US is seriouly conernced with spreading Democratic govt.s then getting rid of Assad would rank in priority with Gaddafi. And unlike removing Mubarak both Israel and GCC countries would be happy with the removal of Assad in Syria.

I don't think the Syrian uprising is a good thing for Israel, the Muslim brotherhood is most likely to take things over and the Syrian public opinion is that Assad is a coward for not invading the Israeli Golan. If anything, I'd like to see an uprising in Jordan and the country getting it's proper name Palestine.

 

[pmaitra]

A new endgame in Syria

A new endgame in Syria

The end of 2011 for Syrians protesting against President Bashar Al Assad may not have brought the change they hoped for but their resolve to continue their movement into next year remains strong.
Undeterred by the continued killings despite the presence of the Arab League monitors currently in the country to assess the ground situation, Syrian activists called for mass rallies on Friday. They are obviously determined to provide first hand testimony of the government's brutal repression to the visiting team of observers.


So far the observers headed by Sudanese veteran General Mustafa Al-Dabi have not raised much hue and cry. In fact, General Dabi's initial views of the situation, which he called "reassuring so far" has disappointed the opposition alliance, the Syrian National Council. The opposition while cognisant of the government's plans to control the observers' movements to prevent them from witnessing the reality is still hopeful of bringing truth to light. The observers' mission is the first step in the implementation of the Arab League plan aimed at ending the strife. Its importance cannot be undermined for its findings are to form the basis of the enactment of the League's plan to end the fighting and pave the way for negotiations. This is hardly achievable until both the government and the opposition backed by the Free Syrian Army put down arms and agree to talk. While the opposition's fears of the observers' mission being sabotaged by Assad cannot be dismissed, recent events have proven that the situation is transparent enough for them to form an independent judgment. For one the violence has continued as have the protests. But the worrisome factor is how easily the determined stand on either side could further raise the stakes in this bloody fight that shows no signs of abatement.


However, with regional and international focus turned on Syria, Assad's decision to allow the observers as part of the agreement to end the implosive crisis is a breakthrough. While hell bent on crushing dissent, Assad cannot be unaware of his isolation and loosening grip on power. It is this very fact that may have forced him to agree to the plan in the first place. It is therefore hoped that Assad steps back from his maximalist position and makes the move towards a political settlement.

Source: A new endgame in Syria

 

[pmaitra]