WarSclerotic

SYRIA TOLL RISES TO 44, AS ASSAD CONTINUES KILLING CAMPAIGN.

Al Arabiya

Saturday, 21 May 2011

Security forces killed at least 44 people during pro-democracy protests, which swept Syria on Friday and early Saturday, with most of the casualties in the western province of Idlib and the central city of Homs. President Bashar al-Assad of Syria seems to be showing no signs of relenting in his campaign to crush protesters.

The continued killings raise the question of what President Barack Obama of the United States will do, if anything, to deal with the deepening humanitarian crisis in Syrian.

“Syrian authorities are continuing to use excessive force and live ammunition to face popular protests in various regions throughout the country,” said Ammar Qurabi, head of the National Organization for Human Rights, who was reached by telephone by Agence-France Presse.

Mr. Qurabi said 26 people were killed in the province of Idlib and 13 in Homs. Two people were also killed in the eastern town of Deir Ezzor, one in Daraya, a suburb of the capital Damascus, one in the coastal city of Latakia (from where the Assad clan hails) and one in central Hama.

Syria has banned foreign journalists and prevented local reporters from covering trouble spots, making it nearly impossible to independently verify witness accounts.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which is based in Britain, said on Friday that at least 831 civilians had been killed since the uprising against autocratic rule erupted in the southern city of Deraa nine weeks ago. It said at least 10,000 people had been arrested, including hundreds across Syria on Friday.

Syrian authorities blame most of the violence on armed groups, backed by Islamists and outside powers, who they say have killed more than 120 soldiers and police. They have recently suggested they believe the protests have peaked.

The United States, which has condemned the crackdown as barbaric, imposed targeted sanctions against Mr. Assad this week. President Obama said on Thursday that he should “lead that transition or get out of the way.”

Despite strong words from the White House, the West has so far taken only small steps to isolate Mr. Assad when compared with its bombing campaign against Libya’s leader Muammar Gaddafi, also accused of killing protesters.

The two-month uprising has posed the gravest challenge to Mr. Assad’s 11-year rule. He has lifted a 48-year state of emergency and granted citizenship to stateless Kurds, but also sent tanks to several cities to suppress the protests.

Western powers, fearing instability across the Middle East if Syria undergoes an upheaval, made only muted criticisms of Mr. Assad’s actions at first, but then stepped up their condemnation and imposed sanctions on leading Syrian figures.

Damascus condemned the sanctions, saying they targeted the Syrian people and served Israel’s interests.

“The sanctions have not and will not affect Syria’s independent will,” an official source was quoted as saying on state television on Thursday.

On Friday, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez expressed support for his ally Mr. Assad, saying on Twitter: “I have spoken with the Syrian president, our brother Bashar, a few minutes ago. Syria is the victim of a fascist attack. God help Syria!!”

Mr. Chavez has said he suspects the US government is covertly trying to destabilize Mr. Assad’s government.

(Sara Ghasemilee, an editor at Al Arabiya English, can be reached at: sara.ghasemilee@mbc.net)

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