Tanks, troops escalate Syria’s suppression

Tanks, troops escalate Syria’s suppression

The Independent News Alternative Real News

BEIRUT — The Syrian Army stormed the restive city of Daraa with tanks and soldiers, and helped detain dozens in towns across the country yesterday in an escalation of the crackdown on Syria’s five-week-old uprising, according to residents and human rights activists.

They said at least 25 people were killed in Daraa, with reports of bodies strewn on the streets.

Residents said at least eight tanks drove into the city before dawn, with 4,000 to 6,000 troops, though some estimates put the numbers far lower. Water, electricity, and phone lines were cut, making first-hand accounts difficult and the numbers impossible to verify. Nearby border crossings with Jordan were reported sealed.

The military’s move into Daraa seemed to signal a new, harrowing chapter in a crackdown that has killed nearly 400 people.

The government has tried concessions and brute force to maintain the once-uncontested rule of President Bashar al-As sad, but its actions yesterday indicated that it is moving to crush a wave of dissent that has reached virtually every province of the country.

“The government has decided to choose the path of violence and repression,’’ said a Syrian analyst in Beirut, who asked to remain anonymous for his safety. “How far can they go in this repression? That is the question.’’

As in 1982, when the military put down an Islamist revolt and killed at least 10,000 people in Hama, the military again showed its willingness to use force to repress its own people.

Though there were rumors of discord among soldiers on the ground, its leadership is still dominated by Assad’s minority sect and its deployment to Daraa illustrated that a crucial bastion of government support remains loyal — in stark contrast with Egypt, where the military’s refusal to fire on protesters proved decisive in President Hosni Mubarak’s fall from power.

The official Syrian news agency said last night that the military had entered Daraa at the request of citizens to hunt what it called “extremist terrorist groups.’’

Daraa, a southern city of low-slung buildings with 75,000 inhabitants, has become almost synonymous with the popular revolt that has posed the greatest challenge to four decades of rule by the Assad family.

Protests erupted there in March after security forces arrested high school students accused of scrawling antigovernment graffiti on a wall, galvanizing demonstrations that have spread from the Mediterranean coast and eastern regions dominated by Kurds to the steppe of southern Syria.

Snipers who entered Daraa yesterday took positions on the roofs of mosques, residents said, and soldiers and armed irregular forces went house to house to search for protesters.

“There are bodies in the streets we can’t reach; anyone who walks outside is getting shot at,’’ said a resident who gave his name as Abdullah and was reached by satellite phone. “They want to teach Syria a lesson by teaching Daraa a lesson.’

A handful of videos posted on the Internet, along with residents’ accounts, painted a picture of a city under broad military assault, in what appeared to mark a new phase in the government crackdown. Tanks had not previously been used against protesters, and the force of the assault suggested the military planned some sort of occupation of the city.

Tweet 2 people Tweeted thisYahoo! Buzz ShareThis  “It’s an attempt to occupy Daraa,’’ Abdullah said.

He said soldiers had taken three mosques, but had yet to capture the Omari Mosque, where thousands had sought refuge. Since the beginning of the uprising last month, it has served as a headquarters of sorts for demonstrators. He quoted people there shouting, “We swear you will not enter but over our dead bodies.’’

He said residents also tried to block roads with cement blocks and cars. “We didn’t pay such a high price to quit now,’’ he added.

For weeks, organizers have managed to circumvent the government’s attempt to black out news from Daraa and cities like Homs. But it appeared to have more success yesterday. Organizers had trouble reaching contacts, and only occasional videos emerged from the tumult.

Wissam Tarif, executive director of Insan, a human rights group, said his organization had a list of 25 people killed yesterday in Daraa.

In Jableh, a coastal city inhabited by Syria’s Sunni Muslim majority and members of the minority Alawite sect, from which the government draws much of its support, security forces killed at least 12 people in a crackdown that began Sunday and persisted into the night. One resident said protesters burned an army car and took a soldier hostage.

The United States called the violence in Syria “completely deplorable.’’

Tommy Vietor, a National Security Council spokesman, said the Obama administration was considering sanctions against Syrian officials to “make clear that this behavior is unacceptable.’’

The sanctions would probably involve asset freezes and travel bans on Assad, members of his family ,and senior regime officials accused of human rights abuses, the Associated Press reported. Syria already is subject to numerous penalties as it is deemed a “state sponsor of terrorism’’ by the State Department.

At the United Nations, European and American officials circulated a draft Security Council statement condemning the crackdown and calling on the government to respect human rights and freedom of expression. The draft endorses a call by Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, released last Friday, urging an independent investigation into the mounting death toll.

Source: Boston Globe

WAR