Bets on Syria: Bashar al-Assad is going down (videos)

Middle East pundits have written those words: “Assad is going down”. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain have recalled their ambassadors from Syria. Tuesday, Turkey’s foreign minister met with Assad to express their alarm at the bloodshed in Syria. The United States and the European Union have stepped up sanctions. The NY Times has written that Obama may soon declare that Mr. Assad must step down; a pronouncement the White House has so far been reluctant to make. What other way is going to be left?

The NY Times also writes that the Obama administration is not ruling out civil war. If Syria turns out to be anything like Libya, one can only assume that Assad like Gaddafi will not go quietly and in the long run, the innocent are going to be the ones who pay. Activists are estimating that over 2,000 people have been killed since the uprising began some five months ago. Considering the crackdown which started in Hama on July 31 and the continued violence in places like Deir al-Zour a week later, it would seem the regime has no intention of heeding the international calls to stop the bloodshed.

CNN reports Thursday morning that troops have pushed into the northeastern city of Saraqib. Residents reported hearing heavy gunfire and seeing troops break down doors of a number of local businesses during a search of the city for opposition activists, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. 70 people have supposedly been arrested as the government looks to hunt down any opposition to its rule.

News outlets have said that troops have left the centre of Hama “after restoring the security and stability to the city that have been through tough times due to the acts of killings, terrorizing and sabotage that were done by the armed terrorists groups,” citing SANA, the state-run Syrian news agency. Since the crackdown in that city which started on July 31, over 200 were killed.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Wednesday that Turkey’s envoy to Syria, Omer Onhon, had visited Hama and confirmed that tanks and heavy weapons were withdrawn and there was no military buildup “in its surroundings.”

“He visited all of the area and went to all the streets. He prayed with the people at the big mosque there,” Davutoglu said of Onhon.

While this seems like good news, other sources claimed that Onhon saw a limited part of Hama as the Assad government tried to hide what was really going on in Hama.

The Syria uprising started five months ago when Syrian forces suppressed protests in the southern city of Daraa. As anti-government fervour spread nationwide, the government responded with tougher crackdowns. As of yesterday, Local Coordination Committees in Syria said the death toll had reached 2,417 including more than 2,000 civilians. This includes 84 deaths in the city of Deir Ezzor alone since Saturday, when pro-government forces began a military campaign in the area. It is reported by the LCC that Wednesday’s deaths included 18 people in Homs and one each in Hama, Nawa, Taftanaz and the Damascus suburb of Saqba. Britain’s Deputy Ambassador Philip Parham has said that another 13,000 people remain detained.

Uploaded by AlJazeeraEnglish on Aug 10, 2011

UN warns sanctions of Syria unless crackdown stops

United Nations ambassadors have threatened Security Council action if the Syrian government killing does not stop killing its citizens. The warning comes as growing international concern over the situation in Syria mounts. Members of the UN Security Council called the fighting “depressing and chilling.” Now, the United States has announced a new set of sanctions against Assad’s government.

Published on Aug 10, 2011 by Euronews

Arab states step up pressure on Syria’s Assad

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has so far showed no sign of calling an end to his six-month crackdown on anti-government protesters. He has lifted a ban on opposition parties after decades of Baath Party rule, while still insisting that the protests are being conducted by armed gangs. Footage broadcast on state television claims to show the weapons seized from protesters. Assad has described them as terrorists, but pressure from Syria’s Arab neighbours could force him to soften his accusations.

Uploaded by AlJazeeraEnglish on Aug 8, 2011

Beirut protests in solidarity with Syrian people

Hundreds of people took part in a demonstration in Beirut, Lebanon’s capital, in solidarity with neighbouring Syrian people as Syrian security forces’ heightened its crackdown on peaceful protesters and civilians. The protest in Beirut, which included prominent intellectualls, writers, journalists and activists, was held on Monday in the symbolic Martyr’s Square to grieve over the more than 2,000 Syrians killed since March.

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