Syrian forces kill 24, protesters call for protection
http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=243530
Photo by: REUTERS
10/28/2011 17:15
AMMAN – Syrian forces shot dead at least 24 civilians on Friday when they fired on demonstrators demanding international protection from President Bashar Assad’s crackdown on seven months of unrest, activists and residents said.
Most of the killings took place in the central cities of Hama, where Assad sent tanks and troops to crush dissent three months ago, and Homs, a center of increasingly armed opposition to his autocratic rule.
“A no-fly zone is a legitimate demand for Homs,” read banners carried by protesters in the Khalidiya neighborhood.
NATO jets played a central role in the overthrow of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, but the Western alliance has shown no appetite to intervene in Syria to halt violence which the United Nations says has killed 3,000 people.
Syria’s opposition National Council has called for international protection. It has not explicitly requested military intervention, although street protesters have increasingly voiced that demand.
Assad has not used warplanes against protesters and a no-fly zone in itself would have little impact on the crackdown unless – as in the case of Libya – pilots attacked his ground forces and military bases.
The anti-Assad protesters have been energized by Gaddafi’s death last week but their numbers are still well below those seen before a military crackdown in several cities in July.
Authorities also organized big pro-Assad demonstrations this week, with tens of thousands rallying in Damascus and the eastern town of Hasaka on Wednesday, and more pouring onto streets of the Mediterranean city of Latakia on Thursday.
Syrian forces kill 24, protesters call for… JPost – Middle East.
Explore posts in the same categories: Uncategorized
WarSclerotic 
Leave a comment