The Syria Uprising Thread

[Kenickie]

The Al Jazeera woman who has jailed by Syria and then shipped to Iran is free, and surprisingly, still has all of her fingers and toes.

 

[GenericMind]

9 hours 10 min ago - Syria
Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr has just spoken to a Lebanese resident of Bekaya, a town on the border with Syria.

He says that he can see Syrian army and plainclothes security personnel raiding homes in the town of Areda, on the Syrian side of the border.

The man says most of Areda's residents have fled the town for Lebanon.

He reported that there was no gunfire being heard in the area at the moment.

3 hours 21 min ago - Syria


Russian envoy says Assad must be given a second chance - tweets @SyrianK2011



Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Zasypkin said on Thursday that President Bashar al-Assad should be granted a second chance to implement reforms.

“Russia sees the need to give Syrian President Bashar al-Assad a new chance to implement reforms in his country and solve internal problems without any foreign interferences in Syrian affairs,” the National News Agency quoted Zasypkin as saying.

He added that his country “was and still is keen on the security and stability of the region.” - nowlebanon.com

FUCK YOU RUSSIA

3 hours 2 min ago - Syria


US tells Assad to lead transition or leave - tweeted by @bmangh

The United States told Syria’s President Bashar Al Assad on Wednesday to lead a transition or step down and slapped him with sanctions in its latest effort to press him to end deadly violence against his people.

The news came as Syrian forces were accused of killing at least eight people in a besieged border town and as Assad said the two-month-old revolt against had been mishandled by the authorities but was now drawing to a close. - Khaleej Times

1 hour 46 min ago - Syria


There is heavy army deployment in the Damascus suburb of Douma, telecommunication was blocked a while ago.

While, high security measures have been taken in the Edleb region to prevent residents of neighboring villages from reaching the city for Friday’s demonstrations.

..i.

 

[Kenickie]

god Russia, you will deteriorate as a country over the next 100 years and you will be known as a great country who repetitively came down on the wrong side of history, let your population starve to death or kill themselves through heroin or booze or AIDS.

love you Russia

 

[Ravr]

Russia and China know how to mind their own business and respect the sovereignty of sovereign nations...

 

[GenericMind]

8)..

 

[Shrooms00087]

Russia and China know how to mind their own business and respect the sovereignty of sovereign nations...

pahaha, I'm sorry. But no.

 

[Ravr]

A CENTURY OF U.S. MILITARY INTERVENTIONS:

ARGENTINA 1890 Troops Buenos Aires interests protected.
CHILE 1891 Troops Marines clash with nationalist rebels.
HAITI 1891 Troops Black revolt on Navassa defeated.
IDAHO 1892 Troops Army suppresses silver miners' strike.
HAWAII 1893 (-?) Naval, troops Independent kingdom overthrown, annexed.
CHICAGO 1894 Troops Breaking of rail strike, 34 killed.
NICARAGUA 1894 Troops Month-long occupation of Bluefields.
CHINA 1894-95 Naval, troops Marines land in Sino-Japanese War
KOREA 1894-96 Troops Marines kept in Seoul during war.
PANAMA 1895 Troops, naval Marines land in Colombian province.
NICARAGUA 1896 Troops Marines land in port of Corinto.
CHINA 1898-1900 Troops Boxer Rebellion fought by foreign armies.
PHILIPPINES 1898-1910 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, killed 600,000 Filipinos
CUBA 1898-1902 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, still hold Navy base.
PUERTO RICO 1898 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, occupation continues.
GUAM 1898 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, still use as base.
MINNESOTA 1898 (-?) Troops Army battles Chippewa at Leech Lake.
NICARAGUA 1898 Troops Marines land at port of San Juan del Sur.
SAMOA 1899 (-?) Troops Battle over succession to throne.
NICARAGUA 1899 Troops Marines land at port of Bluefields.
IDAHO 1899-1901 Troops Army occupies Coeur d'Alene mining region.
OKLAHOMA 1901 Troops Army battles Creek Indian revolt.
PANAMA 1901-14 Naval, troops Broke off from Colombia 1903, annexed Canal Zone; Opened canal 1914.
HONDURAS 1903 Troops Marines intervene in revolution.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1903-04 Troops U.S. interests protected in Revolution.
KOREA 1904-05 Troops Marines land in Russo-Japanese War.
CUBA 1906-09 Troops Marines land in democratic election.
NICARAGUA 1907 Troops "Dollar Diplomacy" protectorate set up.
HONDURAS 1907 Troops Marines land during war with Nicaragua
PANAMA 1908 Troops Marines intervene in election contest.
NICARAGUA 1910 Troops Marines land in Bluefields and Corinto.
HONDURAS 1911 Troops U.S. interests protected in civil war.
CHINA 1911-41 Naval, troops Continuous occupation with flare-ups.
CUBA 1912 Troops U.S. interests protected in civil war.
PANAMA 1912 Troops Marines land during heated election.
HONDURAS 1912 Troops Marines protect U.S. economic interests.
NICARAGUA 1912-33 Troops, bombing 10-year occupation, fought guerillas
MEXICO 1913 Naval Americans evacuated during revolution.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1914 Naval Fight with rebels over Santo Domingo.
COLORADO 1914 Troops Breaking of miners' strike by Army.
MEXICO 1914-18 Naval, troops Series of interventions against nationalists.
HAITI 1914-34 Troops, bombing 19-year occupation after revolts.
TEXAS 1915 Troops Federal soldiers crush "Plan of San Diego" Mexican-American rebellion
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1916-24 Troops 8-year Marine occupation.
CUBA 1917-33 Troops Military occupation, economic protectorate.
WORLD WAR I 1917-18 Naval, troops Ships sunk, fought Germany for 1 1/2 years.
RUSSIA 1918-22 Naval, troops Five landings to fight Bolsheviks
PANAMA 1918-20 Troops "Police duty" during unrest after elections.
HONDURAS 1919 Troops Marines land during election campaign.
YUGOSLAVIA 1919 Troops/Marines intervene for Italy against Serbs in Dalmatia.
GUATEMALA 1920 Troops 2-week intervention against unionists.
WEST VIRGINIA 1920-21 Troops, bombing Army intervenes against mineworkers.
TURKEY 1922 Troops Fought nationalists in Smyrna.
CHINA 1922-27 Naval, troops Deployment during nationalist revolt.
HONDURAS 1924-25 Troops Landed twice during election strife.
PANAMA 1925 Troops Marines suppress general strike.
CHINA 1927-34 Troops Marines stationed throughout the country.
EL SALVADOR 1932 Naval Warships send during Marti revolt.
WASHINGTON DC 1932 Troops Army stops WWI vet bonus protest.
WORLD WAR II 1941-45 Naval, troops, bombing, nuclear Hawaii bombed, fought Japan, Italy and Germay for 3 years; first nuclear war.
DETROIT 1943 Troops Army put down Black rebellion.
IRAN 1946 Nuclear threat Soviet troops told to leave north.
YUGOSLAVIA 1946 Nuclear threat, naval Response to shoot-down of US plane.
URUGUAY 1947 Nuclear threat Bombers deployed as show of strength.
GREECE 1947-49 Command operation U.S. directs extreme-right in civil war.
GERMANY 1948 Nuclear Threat Atomic-capable bombers guard Berlin Airlift.
CHINA 1948-49 Troops/Marines evacuate Americans before Communist victory.
PHILIPPINES 1948-54 Command operation CIA directs war against Huk Rebellion.
PUERTO RICO 1950 Command operation Independence rebellion crushed in Ponce.
KOREA 1951-53 (-?) Troops, naval, bombing , nuclear threats U.S./So. Korea fights China/No. Korea to stalemate; A-bomb threat in 1950, and against China in 1953. Still have bases.
IRAN 1953 Command Operation CIA overthrows democracy, installs Shah.
VIETNAM 1954 Nuclear threat French offered bombs to use against seige.
GUATEMALA 1954 Command operation, bombing, nuclear threat CIA directs exile invasion after new gov't nationalized U.S. company lands; bombers based in Nicaragua.
EGYPT 1956 Nuclear threat, troops Soviets told to keep out of Suez crisis; Marines evacuate foreigners.
LEBANON l958 Troops, naval Marine occupation against rebels.
IRAQ 1958 Nuclear threat Iraq warned against invading Kuwait.
CHINA l958 Nuclear threat China told not to move on Taiwan isles.
PANAMA 1958 Troops Flag protests erupt into confrontation.
VIETNAM l960-75 Troops, naval, bombing, nuclear threats Fought South Vietnam revolt & North Vietnam; one million killed in longest U.S. war; atomic bomb threats in l968 and l969.
CUBA l961 Command operation CIA-directed exile invasion fails.
GERMANY l961 Nuclear threat Alert during Berlin Wall crisis.
LAOS 1962 Command operation Military buildup during guerrilla war.
CUBA l962 Nuclear threat, naval Blockade during missile crisis; near-war with Soviet Union.
IRAQ 1963 Command operation CIA organizes coup that killed president, brings Ba'ath Party to power, and Saddam Hussein back from exile to be head of the secret service.
PANAMA l964 Troops Panamanians shot for urging canal's return.
INDONESIA l965 Command operation Million killed in CIA-assisted army coup.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1965-66 Troops, bombing Marines land during election campaign.
GUATEMALA l966-67 Command operation Green Berets intervene against rebels.
DETROIT l967 Troops Army battles African Americans, 43 killed.
UNITED STATES l968 Troops After King is shot; over 21,000 soldiers in cities.
CAMBODIA l969-75 Bombing, troops, naval Up to 2 million killed in decade of bombing, starvation, and political chaos.
OMAN l970 Command operation U.S. directs Iranian marine invasion.
LAOS l971-73 Command operation, bombing U.S. directs South Vietnamese invasion; "carpet-bombs" countryside.
SOUTH DAKOTA l973 Command operation Army directs Wounded Knee siege of Lakotas.
MIDEAST 1973 Nuclear threat World-wide alert during Mideast War.
CHILE 1973 Command operation CIA-backed coup ousts elected marxist president.
CAMBODIA l975 Troops, bombing Gas captured ship, 28 die in copter crash.
ANGOLA l976-92 Command operation CIA assists South African-backed rebels.
IRAN l980 Troops, nuclear threat, aborted bombing Raid to rescue Embassy hostages; 8 troops die in copter-plane crash. Soviets warned not to get involved in revolution.
LIBYA l981 Naval jets Two Libyan jets shot down in maneuvers.
EL SALVADOR l981-92 Command operation, troops Advisors, overflights aid anti-rebel war, soldiers briefly involved in hostage clash.
NICARAGUA l981-90 Command operation, naval CIA directs exile (Contra) invasions, plants harbor mines against revolution.
LEBANON l982-84 Naval, bombing, troops Marines expel PLO and back Phalangists, Navy bombs and shells Muslim positions.
GRENADA l983-84 Troops, bombing Invasion four years after revolution.
HONDURAS l983-89 Troops Maneuvers help build bases near borders.
IRAN l984 Jets Two Iranian jets shot down over Persian Gulf.
LIBYA l986 Bombing, naval Air strikes to topple nationalist gov't.
BOLIVIA 1986 Troops Army assists raids on cocaine region.
IRAN l987-88 Naval, bombing US intervenes on side of Iraq in war.
LIBYA 1989 Naval jets Two Libyan jets shot down.
VIRGIN ISLANDS 1989 Troops St. Croix Black unrest after storm.
PHILIPPINES 1989 Jets Air cover provided for government against coup.
PANAMA 1989 (-?) Troops, bombing Nationalist government ousted by 27,000 soldiers, leaders arrested, 2000+ killed.
LIBERIA 1990 Troops Foreigners evacuated during civil war.
SAUDI ARABIA 1990-91 Troops, jets Iraq countered after invading Kuwait. 540,000 troops also stationed in Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, Israel.
IRAQ 1990-91 Bombing, troops, naval Blockade of Iraqi and Jordanian ports, air strikes; 200,000+ killed in invasion of Iraq and Kuwait; large-scale destruction of Iraqi military.
KUWAIT 1991 Naval, bombing, troops Kuwait royal family returned to throne.
IRAQ 1991-2003 Bombing, naval No-fly zone over Kurdish north, Shiite south; constant air strikes and naval-enforced economic sanctions
LOS ANGELES 1992 Troops Army, Marines deployed against anti-police uprising.
SOMALIA 1992-94 Troops, naval, bombing U.S.-led United Nations occupation during civil war; raids against one Mogadishu faction.
YUGOSLAVIA 1992-94 Naval NATO blockade of Serbia and Montenegro.
BOSNIA 1993-? Jets, bombing No-fly zone patrolled in civil war; downed jets, bombed Serbs.
HAITI 1994 Troops, naval Blockade against military government; troops restore President Aristide to office three years after coup.
ZAIRE (CONGO) 1996-97 Troops Marines at Rwandan Hutu refugee camps, in area where Congo revolution begins.
LIBERIA 1997 Troops Soldiers under fire during evacuation of foreigners.
ALBANIA 1997 Troops Soldiers under fire during evacuation of foreigners.
SUDAN 1998 Missiles Attack on pharmaceutical plant alleged to be "terrorist" nerve gas plant.
AFGHANISTAN 1998 Missiles Attack on former CIA training camps used by Islamic fundamentalist groups alleged to have attacked embassies.
IRAQ 1998 Bombing, Missiles Four days of intensive air strikes after weapons inspectors allege Iraqi obstructions.
YUGOSLAVIA 1999 Bombing, Missiles Heavy NATO air strikes after Serbia declines to withdraw from Kosovo. NATO occupation of Kosovo.
YEMEN 2000 Naval USS Cole, docked in Aden, bombed.
MACEDONIA 2001 Troops NATO forces deployed to move and disarm Albanian rebels.
UNITED STATES 2001 Jets, naval Reaction to hijacker attacks on New York, DC
AFGHANISTAN 2001-? Troops, bombing, missiles Massive U.S. mobilization to overthrow Taliban, hunt Al Qaeda fighters, install Karzai regime, and battle Taliban insurgency. More than 30,000 U.S. troops and numerous private security contractors carry our occupation.
YEMEN 2002 Missiles Predator drone missile attack on Al Qaeda, including a US citizen.
PHILIPPINES 2002-? Troops, naval Training mission for Philippine military fighting Abu Sayyaf rebels evolves into combat missions in Sulu Archipelago, west of Mindanao.
COLOMBIA 2003-? Troops US special forces sent to rebel zone to back up Colombian military protecting oil pipeline.
IRAQ 2003-? Troops, naval, bombing, missiles Saddam regime toppled in Baghdad. More than 250,000 U.S. personnel participate in invasion. US and UK forces occupy country and battle Sunni and Shi'ite insurgencies. More than 160,000 troops and numerous private contractors carry out occupation and build large permanent bases.
LIBERIA 2003 Troops Brief involvement in peacekeeping force as rebels drove out leader.
HAITI 2004-05 Troops, naval Marines land after right-wing rebels oust elected President Aristide, who was advised to leave by Washington.
PAKISTAN 2005-? Missiles, bombing, covert operation CIA missile and air strikes and Special Forces raids on alleged Al Qaeda and Taliban refuge villages kill multiple civilians. Drone attacks also on Pakistani Mehsud network.
SOMALIA 2006-? Missiles, naval, troops, command operation Special Forces advise Ethiopian invasion that topples Islamist government; AC-130 strikes, Cruise missile attacks and helicopter raids against Islamist rebels; naval blockade against "pirates" and insurgents.
SYRIA 2008 Troops Special Forces in helicopter raid 5 miles from Iraq kill 8 Syrian civilians
YEMEN 2009-? Missiles, command operation Cruise missile attack on Al Qaeda kills 49 civilians; Yemeni military assaults on rebels
LIBYA 2011-? Bombing, missiles, command operation NATO coordinates air strikes and missile attacks against Qaddafi government during uprising by rebel army.

 

[GenericMind]

So the fuck what? What sort of isolationist non-global fantasy world are you living in? A third of those bullshit examples were U.S. troops simply being deployed to U.S. property to protect civilians during uprisings or violent national upheaval. Another third either occurred within the U.S. itself or are simply standard deployments of military bases in foreign countries. Pick up a history book sometime, then make a list of all the "British military interventions" during a century when they were the world's superpower. Or the French. Or the Spanish.

Stop being retarded.

 

[Max Power]

Hopefully the Syrian revolution forms a somewhat cohesive and centralized coalition otherwise they'll be too scattered to fully begin anew.

 

[botfly]

So the fuck what? What sort of isolationist non-global fantasy world are you living in? A third of those bullshit examples were U.S. troops simply being deployed to U.S. property to protect civilians during uprisings or violent national upheaval. Another third either occurred within the U.S. itself or are simply standard deployments of military bases in foreign countries. Pick up a history book sometime, then make a list of all the "British military interventions" during a century when they were the world's superpower. Or the French. Or the Spanish.

Stop being retarded.

Interventionism has hardly done your country much good has it? The main reason the US is despised and bankrupt. It is the US installing these dictators all over the region that has led to the uprisings, and now you want the US to stick their noses in and select which dictator should go in next? So it's isolationist to not want US troops enforcing 'democracy' across the world? How about a bit of diplomacy for once?
Anyway, all empires end for financial reasons, the US is no different. The troops will eventually have to come home and do their proper job of protecting the country no matter how you feel about America's role in the world.

 

[botfly]

Here's a video of a recent massacre in Syria for anyone interested, pretty fucking graphic so only watch it if you have strong stomach. Man with jaw shot off, kid shot in head etc. Can't believe it's on youtube tbh.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBXNfPsYsMk

 

[JJ-180]

Bashar al-Assad is a good man.

 

[GenericMind]

Interventionism has hardly done your country much good has it?

Quite the contrary. We're still the most powerful country in the World for that reason.

he main reason the US is despised and bankrupt.

The United States isn't bankrupt.

 

[Kenickie]

Quite the contrary. We're still the most powerful country in the World for that reason.
The United States isn't bankrupt.

& I don't think we're despised either. We're still a beacon for many people in many countries, and in the countries where we are 'despised', it's by a minority of people, not the majority. Indeed, I think that number will shrink even further, if we do the right thing in the Arab/Muslim world. Sure, it's 'trendy' for intellectuals in other countries to look down on us,(for things that may or may not be true, but it's usually for 'flaws of character' not our policies.) but they don't hesitate to ask for the American leviathan to come to their aid if anything goes wrong.

 

[GenericMind]

Exactly. All one needs to do to realize that is to look at the yearly number of immigrants that come to America for a better life. The only reason it seems like everyone hates us is because media only really covers the loud minority. Millions of people aspiring to come to America doesn't make for as exciting news as anti-american protests in Iran.

 

[GenericMind]

10 hours 53 min ago - Syria
We're receiving reports from Homs that roughly 15 tanks and at least 2,000 Syrian security forces personnel have pulled back from Talkalakh into Homs.

A crowd of at least 3,000 people was seen apparently celebrating the return of the troops. Traffic was completely blocked for hours on the 60km stretch of road from the Lebanese border (where Talkalakh is located) to Homs. Pro-government demonstrators were also firing guns skywards.

When asked whether they supported the government, a driver who was part of the procession said:

We must celebrate if we don't want any trouble."

Others, however, responded to the same question with:

We won against the terrorists."

10 hours 53 min ago - Syria
The US State department has been tweeting to remind the world that the US has designated Syria as a "State sponsor of terror" since 1979.

We reject the Syrian government’s justification of its tactics as necessary to maintain “stability.” The Asad regime remains the source of instability as it foments violence by meeting peaceful protests with deadly force and mass arrests. Despite the Syrian government’s violent repression and blatant disregard for the human rights of its citizens, the Syrian people continue to call for their legitimate demands to be met. The Syrian people have made clear that the status quo is unacceptable and that the Syrian government must meet their legitimate aspirations and end the killing, torture, and arbitrary detentions of protestors and activists.

10 hours 2 min ago - Syria
Syria's Local Coordination Committees, who have coordinated protests against the government, say they want today to be marked as "Azadi Friday". "Azadi" is the Kurdish word for "freedom". (It also carries that same meaning in several other languages, including Farsi and Urdu.)

9 hours 5 min ago - Syria
According to the Syrian Revolution 2011 Facebook group, anti-government protesters this Friday will have a "surprise" for the government.

Damascus and Aleppo are preparing a surprise for the regime and the shabiha [thugs]. We will not be tolerant with the security forces or shabiha. We won't let them arrest us and we will be like a thorn in their throat."

8 hours 25 min ago - Syria
Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr has just been on the bulletin, live from Wadi Khaled, just a few hundred metres from the Syrian border with Lebanon.

Friday prayers are still underway, but we are expecting protests to take place in a number of areas. The opposition has called for massive protests around the country. I managed to speak to a leader of a Kurdish party in the north - now it's worth pointing out that over the last two months the Kurds have turned out in large numbers in various cities and towns in northern Syria. But the Kurds really have stopped short of calling for the toppling of the government.

"Only a few days ago, the Kurdish political parties united and issued a joint statement. In that statement they are still giving the Syrian president a chance, saying 'initiate reforms'. The Kurds really could tip the balance in Syria. Yes, they've taken to the streets, but it seems that they are still willing to talk.

"They are the largest ethnic minority, and there's a considerable population of Kurds, really, in the second-largest citym, Aleppo, which has so far remained relatively quiet. We saw protests there, but confined to the university campus in Aleppo. So it would be interesting to see whether or not the turnout will be large, but we have to bear in mind that there is a heavy security crackdown in protest hubs such as the central [cities] of Homs and Baniyas, and all across the southern countryside, the Deraa governate.

"Hundreds of Syrians now live in border villages - just 200m [away from me] is the Syrian border, you can actually see the Syrian army. They've reinforced their positions, they've laid siege to the town of Areda, and behind Areda the town of Talkalakh, one of the protest hubs.

"Every Syrian refugee I've spoken to here say they will not accept anything less than the toppling of the Syrian government. For them, there is no compromise.

"I also asked them whether or not President Obama's speech yesterday, calling on President Bashar to initiate the process of democratic reform or leave - they're saying that this is a positive move, and they would like the international community to put more political pressure in their words. But the opposition seems to be divided, and this is where the problem lies. You have the opposition inside Syria still saying that ... yes, we could still work with the Syrian government if they initiate political reforms, if they reform the security. But you have those abroad - the opposition groups abroad - saying 'No, there is no way to hold any sort of dialogue with the Syrian government'. So this really weakens the opposition and the protest movement in Syria."

8 hours 13 min ago - Syria


Pro-democracy protestors in the central city of Homs are attempting to evade the army and secret police and gather in a main square by using side streets in the Old City where security has not deployed, according to an eyewitness who spoke to Al Jazeera.

With tanks deployed around Homs, especially in the Baba Amer and Sultaniyya areas, and checkpoints on most main streets, some 2,000 protestors are using a technique which succeeded on Wednesday, when protesters started in small neighbourhoods and made their way to Homs’ main squares unhindered.

Secret police and soldiers have begun searching all passing cars for weapons, the eyewitness said.

“This is an illusion. The regime wants to create in the minds of people the impression that there are terrorists and armed groups among them, which is absolutely not the case,” he said.

“We didn’t use any weapons before and we have no intention of using violence. The protests started peacefully and will carry on like that. We expect anything today – they have already shelled Baba Amer before so anything is possible.”

8 hours 4 min ago - Syria
Thousands of pro-democracy protesters are marching in the Syrian city of Baniyas, despite a heavy security presence, says the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

In Qamishli, thousands of Syrian Kurds are shouting "Freedom!" in a large pro-democracy rally, Reuters reports, citing witnesses.

In the southern Damascus suburb of Hajr al-Aswad, thousands of pro-democracy protesters are calling for the "fall of the regime".

In Homs, a rights campaigner says that Syrian security forces are firing live ammunition at pro-democracy protesters, Reuters reports.

7 hours 46 min ago - Syria
AFP reports that hundreds of pro-democracy protesters have taken to the streets in Ain Arab, a mainly Kurdish region near Aleppo, chanting "No to violence, yes to dialogue" and "We are not Islamists or Salafists, we want freedom".

The news agency was getting its information from Radif Mustapha, the head of a Kurdish human rights group, via telephone.

"No one is calling for the downfall of the regime," he said, as the demonstrators could be overheard shouting "azadi, azadi" or "freedom" in Kurdish.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says that thousands of men, women and children are on the streets of Baniyas, calling for freedom and the lifting of a siege on several cities by security forces. SOHR says many of the men were marching bare-chested, in an attempt to prove that they were unarmed.

Hassan Berro, an activist, told AFP that protests were also taking place in Qamishli, Amuda and Derbasiyeh.

Berro said that security forces were not intervening to stop those protests at this point.

7 hours 43 min ago - Syria
An activist has told Reuters that Syrian security forces have fired live rounds into crowds gathered for at least two separate protests in Homs.

The Syrian Observatory Human Rights, meanwhile, says that the protests in Baniyas as the largest since such protests began about nine weeks ago.

7 hours 30 min ago - Syria
In Midan, a conservative Sunni neighbourhood of Damascus, a demonstration by Abu Ayoub al-Ansari Mosque had barely begun before security forces fired tear gas on around 1,000 protesters, an eyewitness told Al Jazeera.

Several protesters were arrested, he said, including three of his friends.

At the nearby al-Hassan mosque, a protest is currently underway, according to a second eyewitness, with people chanting for an end to the military sieges imposed on Deraa, Baniyas, Homs and Douma and for freedom.

On April 29, Midan saw the largest anti-regime protests in the capital since the uprising began. There is a heavy security presence around the al-Hassan mosque, but the protest has so far have been allowed to proceed.

In Berze, a suburb northeast of Damascus between 500 to 700 protesters are marching from al-Diea Mosque towards to Salaam Mosque where they plan to join other protesters heading to the main square, according to an eyewitness there.

Again, there is a heavy security presence in Berze, said the eyewitness, but the protesters had so far been left alone.

7 hours 23 min ago - Syria
More reports of violence in Damascus, where an eyewitness has told Al Jazeera that pro-regime thugs with iron bars have attacked a group of 500 to 700 worshippers as they left the Dahabiyye Mosque in Bab Sriejeh, in the Old City, after Friday prayers.

Protesters had planned a demonstration to start after the prayers but the imam had warned against protests starting from his mosque. The thugs were waiting outside the mosque, said the eyewitness, suggesting they knew a protest was planned.

7 hours 2 min ago - Syria
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says that gunfire is continuing in Baniyas.

"The sound of gunfire is being heard now in Baniyas. The demonstration erupted although around 1,000 people from the city and around it have been detained in the last few weeks," a spokesman for the Observatory told Reuters.

Witnesses say large demonstrations are also taking place in Hama and Tel (north of Damascus). One witness said the combined crowd at two demonstrations in Hama was as much as 20,000.

6 hours 52 min ago - Syria
The Associated Press reports that three people have been killed after security forces opened fire on pro-democracy protesters in Homs, according to protest organisers. Details to follow.

6 hours 50 min ago - Syria
AFP says the number of people killed when security forces opened fire on protesters in Homs and Deraa is now five, including a child. The agency is citing witnesses.

The child and three other people were shot in Homs, and another person was shot in Sanamin, AFP says.

5 hours 58 min ago - Syria


Syrian secret police have killed at least nine people in Homs, including an 11-year-old boy, in an armed crackdown on protestors today, according to three separate eye witnesses who spoke to al-Jazeera.

The attack took place after the secret police had driven police cars into a demonstration of some 2,000 people in an attempt to break it up, said a second eyewitness. After hitting several protestors with the vehicles, one of the cars crashed into a wall, prompting the secret police to jump out and open fire.

5 hours 20 min ago - Syria




Responding to the crackdown on protest action in Syria, The Independent’s political correspondent Robert Fisk told Al Jazeera:

“In Egypt, at the end of the day, the army would not shoot its own people. In Syria and Libya, they will, because they defend the regime rather than the people, and that's the problem.

“In certain countries, but obviously Syria, we have a danger of a sectarian war. One of the things I learned from the people in Talkalakh is that when the army entered the town, they separated the Allawis and told them to go home, and then opened fire on the Sunnis. Now, is there a better way to start a civil war than to do that? So I'm very worried about Syria. I think there's a great danger of it breaking apart, but it's certainly in the Libya bracket for brutality.

Meanwhile, the Kurdish-majority areas of Syria’s north-east saw smaller than expected numbers of protestors, according to a Kurdish political activist, despite that today’s nationwide demonstrations had been dubbed by organisers as Azadi Friday, the Kurdish word for freedom.

4 hours 50 min ago - Syria


According to witnesses, in Qamishli around 3,000 protesters took to the streets calling for toppling the regime, a call that was echoed across the north.

While, in Amouda, some 6,000 protesters demonstrated, in Deir Basiyye around 2,000 and in Ain al-Arab around 2,000, he said. There were also protests in Ras al-Ain.

3 hours 46 min ago - Syria
In response to the first widespread participation of Assyrian Christians in the democratic uprising, Syrian security has raided the headquarters of the Assyrian Democratic Association in Qamishli and arrested 12 of its members, according to two activists who spoke to Al Jazeera.

"The new thing this Friday was the large participation of Christian Assyrians. There were hundreds of Assyrians with us and now the security men are arresting leaders from the Democratic Assyrian Organization," said a Kurdish leader in Qamishli.

"The regime is so afraid to see that Muslim Arabs and Kurds and Christians are demonstrating together against the regime. This the best answer to the regime who says that Salafists and radical Islamists are behind the demonstrations. Syrians want freedom."

Khodr Abdel Karim, a human rights activist in Qamishli, said: "This is a message from the regime to Syrian Christian not to participate in any of these demonstrations. It is the duty of every Syrian to claim them back from this arrest."

3 hours 42 min ago - Syria
At least 23 protestors have been killed across Syria today, according to Razan Zeitouna, a leading Syrian human rights researcher who spoke to Al Jazeera.

Activists have listed names of 23 protestors shot by Syrian security forces, with a further two victims yet to be fully identified.

Nine protestors were killed in Maret al-Naiman and Kafr Nabal, suburbs of Hama, nine were killed in Homs, including an 11-year-old boy, four were killed in Berze, a suburb of Damascus, and one person died in Sanamin, near Deraa.

3 hours 40 min ago - Syria
Security forces opened fire on protesters in Berze, a suburb north-east of Damascus, this afternoon, killing four protesters and wounding tens, an eyewitness told Al Jazeera.

"The protesters have all been shot in the legs and stomach," he said.

The protest began after Friday prayers where around 1,000 people marched through the streets chanting “peaceful, peaceful” and calling for the toppling of the regime.

The eyewitness told Al Jazeera that security forces had first attacked and beaten protesters with sticks and had then fired tear gas at them.

"Then they opened fire on us," he said, the sound of gun shots audible over the phone line as he spoke.

After the killing, security forces began detaining people, he said. "So people are afraid to go home for fear of being arrested."

The eyewitness said he had seen officers from the security services pouring fuel on a shop and a house in Berze before setting them on fire while protesters tried to stop them. Berze is now surrounded by police checkpoints and electricity to the town has been cut.

"I think they are doing it to blame us for sabotage," he said.

2 hours 36 min ago - Syria
Protestors in the far east of Syria have set fire to offices of the ruling Baath Party, according to two local leaders.

A video claiming to show the incident in Albou Kamal, on Syria's border with Iraq, shows thick black smoke pouring into the sky, but it is not possible to identity the building from which it is coming.

"The people here are very angry at this regime and the Baath Party," said a tribal leader from Deir Ezzour, the capital of the governorate.

"People want to overthrow the regime. There can be no dialogue with tanks and soldiers, no dialogue with security men who kill, arrest and smash the homes of civilians. We want democracy and freedom. We want to feel we are real citizens, not numbers."

An activist in Hassake, to the north of Deir Ezzour, confirmed news of the attack on the Baath Party offices.

1 hour 24 min ago - Syria
Hugo Chavez, the president of Venezuela, has jumped in to defend his "brother," President Bashar al-Assad of Syria.

Chavez tweeted that the Syria is the "victim of a fascist attack" - by which he meant the protests - after speaking with Assad by phone.

"Syria is the victim of a fascist onslaught. God help Syria!" Chavez wrote on his Twitter account.

1 hour 9 sec ago - Syria
Razan Zaitouna, a Syrian human rights lawyer, said dozens of people were killed on Friday.

Zaitouna said 12 people were killed in the town of Maaret al-Numan, south of Syria's second city Aleppo. Tanks had entered the town earlier in the day to disperse protesters.

She said another 11 were killed in the central city of Homs.

She said seven others were killed in Deraa, Latakia, the Damascus suburbs and Hama, where the current president's father, the late president Hafez al-Assad, sent the military to crush an armed Islamist uprising in the 1980s.

Syria has imposed a strict media blackout since the protests began and Al Jazeera has no way of independently confirming the death toll.

55 min 9 sec ago - Syria
Barack Obama, the US president, said in his speech that Syria was of "acute concern" for the United States and Israel, and outlined tough US measures against Damascus to Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister.

Obama said that Syria's actions amid a crackdown on demonstrators were an "acute concern" for Israel and said he outlined tough new sanctions that he imposed this week on President Bashar al-Assad.

His comments, spoken with Netanyahu at his side, came after his talks with the Israeli leader on Friday.

21 min 9 sec ago - Syria
Lebanon should grant immediate asylum to Syrians fleeing violence in their country instead of detaining them, Human Rights Watch said Friday.

"Lebanon's security forces should stop detaining Syrian refugees who cross the border into Lebanon to escape violence and persecution in their country," the New York-based rights group said.

The rights group called on Lebanon to provide Syrian refugees "with at least temporary asylum, and above all refrain from deporting them back" to their country.

"Syria welcomed many Lebanese fleeing civil war back in 2006," said Nadim Houry, director of HRW's Beirut office. "Now it's time to return the favor.

HRW said it documented the detention by Lebanon's security forces of nine Syrian men and one child since May 15, allegedly for crossing illegally into Lebanon.

Deporting asylum seekers and refugees, Houry said, would "make Lebanon complicit with any harm they suffer at the hand of Syria's security services upon their return."

...

 

[GenericMind]

Security forces killed 44 people during anti-regime protests which swept Syria on Friday, a human right activist told the AFP news agency.

"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 Organisation for Human Rights.

He said 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 and one in central Hama.

Al Jazeera has heard about more and more people being detained by Syrian authorities.

Amjad Baiazy, 29, was arrested in Damascus on May 12, 2011. A Syrian national usually residing in the UK, he is known for being outspoken about the injustices of the Assad regime. Baiazy's friends say there has not been much concrete information about his arrest.

This Facebook page was set up calling for his release.

Security forces have opened fire on mourners in Homs during a funeral for a protester killed there yesterday, an eyewitness told Al Jazeera.

Security forces opened fire on a crowd of around 1,000 mourners as they had left the Grand Mosque in the centre of the city. Gunshots were audible as Al Jazeera spoke to the eyewitness.

Funerals are taking place in the neighbourhoods of Al Wa’r, Hammediyye and by the Grand Mosque today in Homs today, where on Friday nine people were killed by security forces, including an 11-year-old boy from a nearby village.

Organisers of yesterday’s protests in Syria have released, for the first time, a map of the country detailing sites of protests, numbers killed and where live fire was used:

In Homs more than 40,000 mourners are marching towards Tal-al-Nasser cemetery to bury several of the nine protesters who were killed in the city yesterday, a witness told Al Jazeera.

Funerals had begun from different mosques across the city but mourners had come together into a single large group which is heading to the cemetery on the outskirts of the city.

Security forces had initially opened fire on mourners and shot into the air to disperse crowds leaving the Grand Mosque, the witness said, but had since dispersed with the army pulling its tanks back when the size of the funeral procession became overwhelming.

“When we gather in large numbers we show our power. As individuals we are strong, but this is a stronger message,” said the witness. “We encouraged people to join us on this funeral march and people of all backgrounds and religions did.”

Government security forces and others in plain clothes have opened fire on a huge crowd of mourners in Homs killing at least two people and injuring more than twenty as they returned from funerals, an eyewitness told Al Jazeera.

More than 40,000 people gathered for the funerals of protesters killed yesterday and were walking back from the cemetery in Tal al Nasser on the outskirts of the city when security forces opened fire without warning.

The sound of gunfire and cries to help the wounded were audible over the phone as Al Jazeera spoke to the eyewitness.

The wounded have been taken to private clinics and homes as people fear the secret police will raid and arrests the injured from the main state hospital, he said, as they have done in previous such attacks.

A group known as Syrian Youth has called on Facebook today for a world wide sit-in on Monday May 23 in memory of protesters killed in Syria.

The group is calling for a silent, candle lit sit-in to be held in Damascus at 5.30 pm local time with other vigils held simultaneously around the world. Organisers are asking protesters not to bring any pictures of the dead or any banners and are asking people not to chant.

In response, the Coordination Committees of Damascus, a youth activist network which has helped organise protests, called for a boycott of the sit-in, rejecting what they said were conditions set by the regime.

In a statement, the Coordination Committees argued that by preventing protestors from chanting for freedom or calling out the names of the “martyrs of freedom” the sit-in would only serve to cover up the killings by Syrian security forces.

“Nobody has the right to prevent us from chanting for the souls of the martyrs and to remind the world what they died for,” a leading member of the committee said.

“There will always be people trying to speak for the opposition, but the real opposition is in the street. We are peaceful protesters and we don’t allow any conditions to distort the real picture of the revolution. This is not a hostile attitude towards anybody, but out of respect for the martyrs.”

The Reuters news agency is reporting that Syrian security forces fired live rounds at a pro-democracy demonstration in the Damascus suburb of Saqba on Saturday, a witness said.

"A large demonstration calling for the overthrow of the regime had been going on since the afternoon. It felt like the whole of Saqba took to the streets. Security forces entered in the evening and started firing," said the witness, a resident of Saqba, speaking by telephone.

...

 

[jspun]

Ravr you forgot Ohio Kent State Massacre:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI7-m919ynU

So you can say that Syria, Lbyia, ect...aren't the only countries that ever fired on protesters. So they learned from this and developed stun (tazer) guns instead- guess they were watching too much star treck as kids

Also, I didn't go over the whole list

But I believe that Grenada was over in a number of days. A communist regieme deposed the government in this commonwealth nation and held the cermonial governor hostage. The seals linerated him. The Rangers I think too point Salines airfield. I believe the 82nd airborne was involved, and the Marines (although they weren't the ones that liberated the med students at true blue med school- mostly US citizens.) Wonder why the brits didn't do this- they proved the capability in the Falklands for expeditionary campaigns. Anyway, in the movie, marine recon (I guess they ment battalion recon as opposed to Force Recon which is an spec ops group like the seals though probably better (they are known for not brging as much as seals and other spec ops units).

Also, the flag incident- that was in the United States, in the Panama Canal Zone. Back then the USA had a zone that was leased "in perpetuity" in otherwards forever. It was an Oasis of Civilization in a third world nation that at that time was poorer than it is today. So when you crosesd the border it was like the twilight zone I've heard, you would leave Mazatlan and cross it leave it to beaver land- manicured lawns, no misquitoes because they sprayed with DDT frequently. American police and a federal circuit court. A place were the constitution applied. They had numerous bases but the remaining population were workers, mostly American Citizens, working for the Panama Canal Authority. The Place even had a governor. Anyway, the Panamanians wanted it back because it split their country in two- 5 miles on each side of the canal. Anyway, students at a secondary school raised the American Flag but not the Panamanian flag that the Panamanianas instead fly equal, next to the American flag. So that touched off a protest and troops or police were called in. But they were foreign nationals on US soil. Just like an Embasy is sovereign for the country it belongs to.

Anyway, the Canal Zone is of note in that it was the first place were cannabis was outlawed d/t military pressure and then after the civilian governor conveyed a commission- the law was rescinded. This was the 20s, during prohibition- they found it much less injurious than alcohol. Fascinating story that I posted somewhere on BL some time ago. Years before the stamp act.

This country aint perfect, but it has the documents and system that has the potential to make it "a more perfect union." We may not be bankrupt but we have a HUGE debt.

It doesn't help when we engineer coups or prop up dictators like we've done in the past. But we don't have to do that. In Mubaracks case, whats comming seems worse. But new countries have growing pains. Wish they hadn't assasinated Sadat- he was a reported hash Connoisseur- and I hear the 70s were the golden ages for that country- for western hippie tourists.

Anyway, what about Syria. I remember hearing on the radio a lady saying "were so despirate if Israel offered to help us we'd accept help." To bad that isn't feasible (but what they should be doing is armed revolution and they need to be supplied by proxy. Iraeli arms, fight by proxy? unlikely but it would be nice for them if they had an Ally in the Region. North Lebanon is mostly Christian (not Hezbollah land).

So what do we do- the UN doesn't have the teeth or this. Maybe the French could send the French Foreign Legion. Lebanon was a French Mandate, don't know about Syria, but thats their tradition as we saw in the Ivory Coast.

Yea, America is the land of opportunity. Upward mobility might be difficult but many immigrants come here, work hard, then their children get educated, or they come and get educated themselves on scholarships. In Greece, I noticed that alot of the animosity (atleast 15 years ago) was due to jelousy. Someone would immigrate 40-50 years ago- work hard- then send the family behind- and the village gifts and money. Then greece entered the Eurozone and they really didn't know how well they had it. For many that stayed behing they didn't make the connection between hard work=success. Probably because a lack of opportunity. So they had a generous social system with 2-4 hour afternoon siestas and people going out evernight- not to get drunk but dance, socialize. Then entering the eurozone, getting euro loans, and basically it was like giving an adolescent a credit card with a 150 euro limit. They maxed it out then some.

But there people march fequently, sometimes get wild (lots of communists and anarchists)- but people don't get shot, though I hear the tension is going up between the people and police that reminds some of the days before the junta of 67' (which the CIA helped engineer). Hope it doesn't come to that in the birthplace of democracy. But only in Greece- the junta fell appart because nobody took it seriously and no conscript soldiers were going to fire on somebodies grandma or brother or sister.

In syria we have a completely different situation. So best plan for the USA- provide the rebels with moral support and cheer them on. Wonder if we could broadcast Radio Free America. Remember listening to it while driving through cold war comecon nations like yougoslavia and hungry. You could pick it up in other parts of Europe as well. Thats probably why many euros despised us- I think they had a regular country music program.

 

[botfly]

Quite the contrary. We're still the most powerful country in the World for that reason.



The United States isn't bankrupt.

No you aren't despised for the American way of life, that's what the neo-cunts try to proclaim, you're despised because of your foreign policy, occupying land you have nusiness occupying and bombing the shit out of anyone who disagrees with your ways. It's obviously not the American people who are to blame, but the imperialist policy of the neo-cons. nd no your prosperity and power is not due to occupying countries lol. In fact you're less safe due to occupying countries. Look at history then you'll understand, The US isn't an exception.
and if you think the US isn't in serious finanical trouble then you have your head in the sand. $60 trillion of obligations is only the start of it.

 

[GenericMind]

Everyone is in financial trouble. That doesn't mean they're bankrupt.