Syria warns West against intervention

IT IS SAID THAT SOME ALAWAITE OR ASSAD WANT TO CREATE AN ALAWITE STATE/AREA TO HOLD OUT IN.

10:19pm UK, Tuesday June 12, 2012

Hillary Clinton has warned that Russia is sending attack helicopters into Syria, as the United Nations peacekeeping chief says the country is now in a full-scale civil war.
The US Secretary of State expressed concerns over reports that Russia is supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime, which could fuel tensions further.

She said: "We have confronted the Russians about stopping their continued arms shipments to Syria.


All our efforts are going into supporting a peaceful transition in Syria and a peaceful solution, because any violent solution would clearly involve many more deaths and a great deal more hardship for the Syrian people.

William Hague, Foreign Secretary
"They have, from time to time, said that we shouldn't worry - everything they are shipping is unrelated to their (the Syrian government's) actions internally. That's patently untrue.

"And we are concerned about the latest information we have that there are attack helicopters on the way from Russia to Syria, which will escalate the conflict quite dramatically."

Her comments come as the UN's Herve Ladsous said violence in the country is escalating.

Asked if the situation in Syria warrants civil war, he said: "Yes I think we can say that.

"Clearly what is happening is that the government of Syria lost some large chunks of territory, several cities to the opposition, and wants to retake control.

"There is a massive increase in the level of violence."



William Hague compared the situation to Bosnia in the nineties

He also referred to the use of helicopters in the government's attempts to recapture districts taken by the opposition.

Mr Ladsous said: "Now we have confirmed reports of not only the use of tanks and artillery but also attack helicopters.

"This is really becoming large-scale."

He is the first senior UN official to declare the conflict a civil war.

Moscow has consistently rejected the use of outside force to end the uprising against Assad's 40-year regime, and insists that any arms it supplies are not being used to quell anti-government dissent.

The two countries have a long-standing military relationship, with Syria hosting Russia's only naval base on the Mediterranean Sea.

If Russia is sending Syria attack helicopters, it would deal a serious blow to efforts to starve government troops of supplies.


There's little doubt the government has forces involved in terrible acts, but so does the FSA, who have taken to assassinating civilians working for the government and, it is claimed by the soldiers, shooting and torturing prisoners. We cannot verify this.

Tim Marshall, foreign affairs editor
The town of Haffa has been one of the areas worst-hit by the escalation in violence.

Syrian Free Army rebels withdrew from the area following bombardment by government troops, a rebel spokesman said.

Angry crowds blocked UN observers from reaching area.

Monitors said they were met with gunfire and their vehicles had stones and metal rods thrown at them, although no one was injured.

The Red Cross has said the situation is deteriorating in several parts of Syria simultaneously making it impossible to respond to all humanitarian needs at once.

Troops also stepped up attacks on the central city of Homs and its suburbs, pounding rebel positions.

But Foreign Secretary William Hague has said he does not want to resort to military intervention.

"This is reminiscent of Bosnia in the early nineties so I don’t think we should think about it in terms of the Libya situation last year," he said.

"All our efforts are going into supporting a peaceful transition in Syria and a peaceful solution, because any violent solution would clearly involve many more deaths and a great deal more hardship for the Syrian people."

12 June 2012 Last updated at 22:31 Share this pageEmail Print Share this page


Syria is now in a state of civil war and the government has lost control of "large chunks" of cities, the UN's head of peacekeeping has told reporters.

It is the first time a UN official has formally voiced that view.

His comments came as UN monitors in Syria were fired on as they tried to reach the besieged town of Haffa.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused Russia of supplying attack helicopters to the Syrian government.

She said the move would "escalate the conflict quite dramatically".

Russia maintains its arms shipments to Syria are unrelated to the conflict there.

Sophisticated attacks
Continue reading the main story
Analysis

Kim Ghattas

BBC State Department correspondent

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hillary Clinton said the Russian move - sending helicopters to Syria - would escalate the conflict in Syria dramatically. She said the US had confronted Russia about its arms shipment to Syria but Moscow insisted that the arms were not being used internally against people.

That, the secretary of state said, was patently untrue. State department spokesperson Victoria Nuland declined to give details about the source of Mrs Clinton's information, but she said the comments were referring to new helicopters that were en route to Syria, and not Syria's existing fleet.

The Pentagon has said it's not aware of specific reports of helicopters being delivered but acknowledged that the Syrian government was using helicopter gunships to attack people and that Russia was re-supplying the Syrian army.

Mr Ladsous, UN under-secretary for peacekeeping operations, said the attack on the UN team near Haffa was deliberate.

Asked whether he believed Syria was now in a civil war, Mr Ladsous told a small group of reporters: "Yes, I think we can say that.

"Clearly what is happening is that the government of Syria lost some large chunks of territory, several cities to the opposition, and wants to retake control."

The UN and the US have warned of an alarming escalation in violence in Haffa, amid reports of a build-up of government forces around the town.

UN monitors first tried to reach Haffa on Monday but were denied access.

On Tuesday, government forces gave them permission to pass through the last checkpoint before the town, but the monitors judged the situation to be "unsafe" and turned back, a UN spokeswoman said.

As they were leaving, an angry crowd threw stones and metal bars at the UN team before unknown assailants opened fire, the spokeswoman said.

None of the observers was hurt.

The BBC's Barbara Plett, at the UN in New York, says UN officials have been speaking this week not only about an intensification of government military operations, including firing from helicopters, but also about a dramatic increase in more sophisticated urban attacks by the opposition.

Hillary Clinton: "We have confronted the Russians about stopping their continued arms shipments to Syria"
Clashes

Earlier this month, activists said Syrian government forces killed 108 people in the region of Houla, in Homs province, and 78 people in the village of Qubair, in Hama province.

Syria blames the violence on foreign-backed armed terrorist gangs.

The UN monitors are in Syria to observe the implementation of a peace plan brokered by UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan. However, a ceasefire which was supposed to come into effect on 12 April never took hold.

Mr Annan has called for another international conference on Syria, but no date or list of participants has yet been announced.

Activists said Syrian forces fired mortars at protesters in the eastern city of Deir al-Zour, killing at least 10 people.

They also reported clashes in central Homs province.

These claims cannot be verified independently as Syria severely restricts journalists' freedom of movement.
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Jun 13, 2:22 AM EDT


Turkey fear Syria conflict can cross its borders


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ANKARA, Turkey (AP) -- Turkey says that Syrian conflict could spill over its borders as the number of Syrian refugees in Turkey increased to more than 29,000.

Deputy Foreign Minister Naci Koru told state-run TRT television Wednesday that "we are disturbed by the possibility that it could spread to us."

Koru did not comment on accusations by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that Moscow was sending attack helicopters to Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime but said Syrian conflict is an issue that "concerns our security."

Koru said 1,400 more Syrian refugees arrived in the past two days increasing the total number to more than 29,000.

© 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published

NATO Chief Sees Parallels Between Syria and Balkans

By PAUL GEITNER

Published: June 11, 2012






BRUSSELS — The secretary general of the NATO alliance, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, said on Monday that the wars in the Balkans in the 1990s illustrated what might befall Syria unless Russia and the West agreed on a “unified, clear message” to the Syrian government to stop the violence.






In an interview, Mr. Rasmussen said that alliance members were disappointed by the failure of President Bashar al-Assad’s government to comply with the peace plan promoted by Kofi Annan, the special envoy for the United Nations and the Arab League.

Mr. Rasmussen said he agreed with the British foreign secretary, William Hague, who told Sky News over the weekend that the crisis in Syria was starting to resemble the sectarian warfare in Bosnia two decades ago, another time when Russia and the West were at odds over how to stop the violence.

“I think one part of the lessons learned from the events in the Balkans is the serious consequences it may have if the international community can’t speak with one voice, and can’t reach an agreement on how to address the security challenges,” Mr. Rasmussen said. “That’s exactly what we’re witnessing in Syria.”

He repeatedly emphasized in the interview that NATO had no plan or intention to intervene militarily in Syria, as the alliance eventually did in Bosnia and in Kosovo, and more recently in Libya. A United Nations Security Council resolution would be needed to authorize any NATO military action of that kind, he indicated.

“If we are to facilitate a peaceful solution in Syria,” Mr. Rasmussen said, “I think it’s of utmost importance that the international community stands united and sends a unified, clear message to the Assad regime that it must live up to its international obligations and stop the crackdowns on the civilian population, and accommodate the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people.”

Mr. Rasmussen expressed concern about recent developments in the Balkans, where NATO is still stationing more than 5,000 troops. Adm. James G. Stavridis, the supreme commander of the alliance’s forces in Europe, wrote in a blog post last week that NATO would maintain that troop level “for the foreseeable future” because “tension continues to be high” in the Balkans, particularly between ethnic Serb and ethnic Albanian communities in northern Kosovo.

Mr. Rasmussen said the alliance postponed plans to reduce the NATO troop presence gradually in the Balkans in part because the European Union’s mission in Kosovo — made up mostly of police and judiciary officials — is being cut by one-quarter this month.

Serbia on Monday inaugurated a new president, Tomislav Nikolic, whose nationalistic statements have raised concerns that he might undo the region’s efforts toward reconciliation. Mr. Nikolic is scheduled to visit Brussels this week to meet with European Union officials, but no stop at the NATO headquarters here is planned.

Serbia officially became a candidate to join the European Union in March. Mr. Rasmussen, a former Danish prime minister, said he trusted that Mr. Nikolic would “stick to that European commitment.” He urged the Serbian government and the ethnic Albanian leadership in Kosovo, a former province of Serbia, to refrain from “unilateral steps that can fuel violence and instability.”

Mr. Rasmussen said he was sure that Greece would remain a strong and “highly valued ally” within NATO even if it dropped out of the euro zone or even the European Union. Still, he said, “from an overall Euro-Atlantic perspective,” it would be best if Greece stayed in the euro zone and the union.

By ELIZABETH A. KENNEDY
Associated Press


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BEIRUT (AP) -- Syrian forces overran a mountain enclave near the Mediterranean coast Wednesday, seizing the territory back from rebels as a serious escalation in violence signaled both sides are using more powerful weapons.

With the bloodshed ramping up, France joined the U.N. peacekeeping chief in declaring Syria was in a state of civil war.

"When many groups belonging to the same people tear each other apart and kill each other, if you can't call it a civil war, then there are no words to describe it," French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius told a news conference in Paris.

The battle for Haffa, in the mountains of Latakia province, raged for eight days as regime forces shelled the village to drive out rebels. The operation apparently was part of a larger offensive to retake areas that had fallen into rebel hands.

State television said regime forces had "cleansed" Haffa of "armed terrorist groups" and the Foreign Ministry urged U.N. observers to immediately head there "to check what the terrorist groups have done."

U.N. observers did not go to Haffa on Wednesday and are assessing the situation to determine when they can successfully reach the town, U.N. peacekeeping spokesman Kieran Dwyer said. On Tuesday, an angry crowd hurled rocks and sticks at the U.N. mission's vehicles, forcing them to turn back. None of the observers was hurt.

Sausan Ghosheh, a spokeswoman for the observers, said they have been trying to reach Haffa since June 7.

Hundreds of rebel fighters believed to have been holed up in Haffa and nearby villages pulled out overnight, said Rami Abdul-Rahman, director of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, citing a network of activists on the ground.

On another front, fireballs of orange flames exploded over the central city of Homs, where Syrian forces fired a continuous rain of shells that slammed into the rebel-held neighborhoods of Khaldiyeh, Jouret al-Shayyah and the old city.

Recovering Haffa was particularly significant to the regime because the town is about 20 miles (30 kilometers) from President Bashar Assad's hometown. Latakia province is the heartland of the Alawite minority to which Assad and the ruling elite belong.

As the violence spiked, both sides in the conflict appeared to be using heavier weapons.

U.N. observers reported Syrian helicopters were firing on Haffa and other restive areas, and amateur videos posted online by activists suggest the opposition is using powerful anti-tank missiles.

"There are arms being delivered, and on both sides," Fabius said.

Although the Syrian rebels are outgunned by the well-armed Syrian army, weapons have been flowing across the country's borders from neighboring Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon. The rebels also say they buy weapons from Syrian soldiers looking to make a profit.

Tensions over the issue flared Wednesday between the U.S. and Russia as they traded blame for the violence in Syria.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton held to her explosive accusation that the "latest information" in U.S. hands is that Russia is sending attack helicopters to Assad's regime. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov fired back by alleging the U.S. has sent military support to the region.

"We have repeatedly urged the Russian government to cut these military ties completely and to suspend all further support and deliveries," Clinton told reporters in Washington. "We know, because they confirm, that they continue to deliver and we believe that the situation is spiraling toward civil war. It is now time for everyone in the international community, including Russia ... to speak to Assad in unified voice and insist that the violence stop."

Lavrov rejected the charge, saying his government was completing earlier weapons contracts with Syria for air defense systems to be used exclusively for self defense against "an armed attack from the outside."

"We are not supplying either to Syria or anywhere else things that are used in fighting with peaceful demonstrators, in contrast to the United States, which regularly supplies such special means to countries in the region," Lavrov said during a trip to Iran.

Russia has emerged as Syria's most important ally and protector, blocking strong action at the U.N. Security Council and speaking against any foreign military intervention.

Moscow's pro-Syria stance is motivated in part by its strategic and defense ties to Damascus, including weapons sales.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague also said weapons were flowing to both sides and called on Russia to halt supplying arms to the Assad regime.

"We have seen signs - rather anecdotal signs - of an increased availability of arms to the opposition," he said during a trip to Afghanistan. "And so this is a deteriorated situation where Russia has an important responsibility due to its relationship with Syria and its position on the Security Council."

Russia's stance is coming under deeper scrutiny now that the conflict is looking more like civil war every day. France's statement that Syria was in a civil war echoed a similar statement by U.N. peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous on Tuesday.

Syria's Foreign Ministry expressed "astonishment" over the claims Wednesday.

"Syria is not witnessing a civil war but rather an armed conflict to uproot terrorism and confront killings, kidnappings, bombings ... and other brutal acts," the ministry said.

Syrian authorities characterize rebels as terrorists and armed gangsters, and the uprising as a foreign plot to destabilize the country.

On Wednesday, a roadside explosion hit a convoy of aid workers in northwest Syria, causing three people to suffer minor injuries, the International Committee of the Red Cross said.

The two Syrian Arab Red Crescent volunteers and an ICRC staff member were traveling from Aleppo to Idlib when the blast hit their marked vehicles, the Geneva-based group said.

Red Cross spokesman Hicham Hassan said it was the first time a Red Cross staffer has been injured since the start of violence last year. Several members of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent have been killed, including the head of its branch in Idlib, who was shot dead in January.

---

Jun 14, 8:02 AM EDT


A glance at Russian arms sales to Syria

VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV
Associated Press



Russian investigator denies threatening reporter









MOSCOW (AP) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has accused Russia of sending attack helicopters to Syria, warning that the shipment "will escalate the conflict quite dramatically." Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has rejected Clinton's claim, saying that Russia is only shipping air defense systems under previously signed contracts.

Russia has shielded Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime, its last ally in the Arab world, from international sanctions and has continued to provide it with weapons despite international outrage. It has shipped billions of dollars worth of missiles, combat jets, tanks, artillery and other military gear to Syria over more than four decades. Moscow says it's currently providing Assad with weapons intended to protect Syria from a foreign invasion and is not delivering the kinds of weapons needed to fight lightly armed insurgents in cities.

Here is a brief look at some of the weapons systems Russia has recently shipped to Syria or pledged to deliver in the future, according to official statements and Russian media reports. Russian government officials have remained secretive about arms trade, so a complete list of Russian weapons and other military gear sent to Syria is unavailable:

- Pantsyr-S1 air defense system. The truck-mounted short- and medium-range system combines air defense missiles and anti-aircraft artillery with sophisticated radar to hit aerial targets with deadly precision at ranges of up to 20 kilometers (more than 12 miles) and an altitude of 15 kilometers ( nearly 50,000 feet). It has further strengthened Syria's air defense system, which has been developed with Moscow's help since Cold War times.

Igor Sevastyanov, a deputy head of the Rosoboronexport state arms trader, said Wednesday that the Pantsyr contract is still being implemented. Sevastyanov didn't offer specifics, but Russian media reports have said that the contract envisaged the delivery of 36 such units, which include a truck mounted with guns and missiles together with a radar.

- Buk-M2 air defense system. The medium-range missile system is capable of hitting enemy aircraft and cruise missiles at ranges of up to 50 kilometers (31 miles) and an altitude of up to 25 kilometers (82,000 feet). It is a sophisticated weapon that is capable of inflicting heavy losses to enemy aircraft if Syria comes under attack.

- Bastion anti-ship missile system. Armed with supersonic Yakhont cruise missiles that have a range of up to 300 kilometers (162 nautical miles), it provides a strong deterrent against an attack from the sea. Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said last fall that Moscow would fully honor the Bastion contract. Russian media reports said that Russia already has fulfilled the Bastion deal, which was worth $300 million, and included the delivery of more than 70 Yakhont missiles.

- Yak-130 combat jets. Russian media reports said early this year that Syria had ordered a batch of 36 Yak-130 combat jets worth $550 million. Officials wouldn't confirm or deny the deal, which would significantly bolster the Syrian air force capability. The Yak-130 is a combat training jet that can also carry modern weapons for ground attack missions.

The Kremlin has insisted that the continuing Russian arms sales don't violate any international agreements and scoffed at Western demands to halt the trade. Underlining Moscow's defiance, a Russian ship carrying a load of weapons arrived In Syria just a few weeks ago amid international anger over Assad's refusal to honor a U.N.-sponsored peace plan.

The new Russian weapons supplies add to Syria's massive arsenal of hundreds of Soviet-built combat jets, attack helicopters and missiles and thousands of tanks, other armored vehicles and artillery systems. Russia said it also has military advisers in Syria training the Syrians to use the Russian weapons, and has helped repair and maintain Syrian weapons. Some experts alleged that the helicopters Clinton said were en route to Syria could be old ones that underwent maintenance in Russia.

© 2012 The AP

Jun 14, 9:32 AM EDT


UN observers enter mountainous enclave in Syria

By ALBERT AJI and ZEINA KARAM
Associated Press







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DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) -- A team of United Nations observers entered the Syrian town of Haffa Thursday after government troops overran the area near the Mediterranean coast, seizing the territory back from rebels after battles that raged for eight days.

The visit came hours after a suicide bomber detonated his van packed with explosives in a Damascus suburb, wounding 14 people and damaging one of Shiite Islam's holiest shrines, according to Syria's state-run news agency and witnesses.

Sausan Ghosheh, a spokeswoman for the observers, confirmed monitors entered Haffa Thursday, and witnesses traveling with the team described scenes of heavy fighting and destruction, including burned-out state buildings and a corpse in a deserted street.

The observers had been trying to get into the town in the coastal Latakia province for a week after fears were raised that a brutal assault by regime forces was under way there.

The mountain enclave has been the site of intense clashes between government forces and hundreds of rebels holed up inside.

On Tuesday, an angry crowd hurled rocks and sticks at the U.N. mission's vehicles near Haffa, forcing them to turn back.

Authorities then said Wednesday they had "cleansed" the area of "armed terrorist groups" and urged U.N. observers to immediately head there "to check what the terrorist groups have done."

The observers stopped by torched buildings belonging to the ruling Baath party's local branch as well as the burned courthouse, post office and other government institutions, according to the witnesses.

U.N. observers have reported a steep rise in violence and a dangerous shift in tactics by both sides in Syria in recent weeks.

Car bombs and suicide bombings have become increasingly common in Syria as the 15-month uprising against President Bashar Assad becomes increasingly militarized. Most have targeted security buildings and police buses, symbols of Assad's regime.

It was not immediately clear whether Thursday's bomber in the Sayyida Zainab suburb of Damascus intended to target the Shiite shrine or a police station that was only 15 meters (yards) away.

As the violence grows more chaotic, it is difficult to assign blame for much of the bloodshed. Western officials say there is little doubt that Islamist extremists, some associated with al-Qaida, have made inroads in Syria as instability has spread.

Witnesses said the bomber detonated an explosives-packed van that he drove into a parking lot about 50 meters (yards) from the shrine despite efforts by guards to stop him. The blast shattered the shrine's windows, knocked down chandeliers and electric ceiling fans and cracked some of its mosaic walls.

Parts from the car detonated by the suicide bomber were found inside the shrine's sprawling complex.

Tens of thousands of Shiite pilgrims from around the world converge on Sayyida Zainab suburb every year to visit the golden-domed complex with the same name, which is believed to house the remains of the granddaughter of Islam's Prophet Muhammad.

It was the latest of Syria's religious, cultural and architectural treasures to suffer from the violence engulfing the country, including churches and mosques, citadels and architectural ruins.

Sheik Sayyed Mojtaba al-Husseini, the representative of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in Syria, accused "terrorists" of the bombing, echoing the government's line that the rebels are foreign agents. Iran is one of Syria's remaining allies.

"They want to turn the people against the government. This is not a revolution, it is a fake reality imported by some Arab leaders who are agents of the West," al-Husseini said.

The site is popular with Iranian and other Shiite pilgrims and tourists.

SANA news agency said 14 people were wounded by the explosion. Six tourist buses and more than 30 cars and a small police bus also were damaged.

"I worked for 10 years before I was able to buy this car," said Amin Daoud, a 35-year-old laborer at the scene of the explosion. "I parked it here last night and now it's totally destroyed."

Walid Aeda, a worker who fled Syria's battered central Homs region and was staying in a hotel near the shrine, said the explosion shattered the glass in his room, wounding his wife who had to get 18 stitches in her head.

"We fled the violence in Homs to come to Damascus and now this," he said.

Troops continued to pound rebel-controlled areas in Homs Thursday, while rebels reportedly clashed with government forces in several other parts of the country.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said three civilians were killed overnight in clashes at the entrances of the Jouret el-Shayyah neighborhood in Homs city. Another died in the rebel-held town of Rastan north of Homs, which has been under intense fire from regime forces for days.

The Observatory said troops were using helicopters and mortars to shell Rastan, adding that many rebels were wounded Thursday.

Activists say some 14,000 people have been killed since the uprising began in March 2011.

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5:20am UK, Friday June 15, 2012

UN observers have visited al Haffa town in the province of Latakia and reported that nearly all government buildings have been burned down.
The UN Supervisory Mission in Syria said observers in Haffa reported finding it all but deserted with a strong stench of dead bodies and almost all government institutions gutted from the inside.

Sky's Tim Marshall, who is in Syria, said the observers had also found many cars burned, including police cars.

The observers were escorted into the town by government forces.

The news comes a day after Syrian authorities said the area had been "cleansed" of rebel fighters.

On Wednesday, rebels were said to have withdrawn from the besieged town and nearby villages that had been under intense regime shelling for eight days.

The UN statement said "a strong stench of dead bodies was in the air and there appeared to be pockets in the town were fighting is still ongoing."

It went on: "Most government institutions, including the post office, were set on fire from inside.

"Archives were burnt, stores were looted and set on fire, residential homes appeared rummaged and the doors were open."

It said the number of casualties was still unclear.



State television said the observers had "inspected the vandalism and destruction wrought by the terrorists."

The UN and opposition activists had expressed fears of a massacre if pro-government forces entered the town, just 10 miles from Assad's hometown of Qardaha.

Meanwhile in Damascus, a suicide bomber blew up a vehicle near an important Shi'ite shrine, killing himself and wounding 14 others, state media and witnesses said, as 35 people were reported killed across the country.

"If the target was because of its location, that's a very worrying vision of the future where each side targets the other," Marshall reported.

"We've seen it in Iraq and Syrians are praying they don't see it here."

Most of Syria's 22 million population are Sunni Muslims, while its minorities include Alawites, an offshoot Shi'ite community to which President Bashar al Assad belongs.

Official news agency Sana said the vehicle exploded in a garage 50 metres from Sayyida Zeinab shrine.

The windows of the mausoleum were shattered and its air vents ripped out by the blast, which left a three-metre crater. Tiles on the minarets were damaged.

International peace envoy Kofi Annan has warned that Syria's nearly 16 months of deadly unrest could turn into all-out sectarian war.

Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims, mainly from Syria's ally Iran, travel each year to the shrine of Sayyida Zeinab, a granddaughter of Muhammad, in an area of south Damascus that is home to many Iraqi refugees.

As the death toll soars, Amnesty International has accused Syria of committing crimes against humanity to punish communities supporting rebels.

The human rights organisation called for an international response after claiming it had fresh evidence that victims, including children, had been dragged from their homes and shot dead by soldiers, who in some cases then set the bodies on fire.

"This disturbing new evidence of an organised pattern of grave abuses highlights the pressing need for decisive international action," said Amnesty's Donatella Rovera on the release of the 70-page report entitled Deadly Reprisals.

The group interviewed people in 23 towns and villages and concluded that government forces and militias were guilty of "grave human rights violations and serious violations of international humanitarian law amounting to crimes against humanity and war crimes."

Foreign Secretary William Hague has urged Russia and Iran to use their "full influence" over Syria to achieve a peaceful end to the bloody uprising.

Mr Hague met his Russian and Iranian counterparts in Kabul during a conference on Afghanistan.

U.S. military completes planning for Syria

By Barbara Starr

The U.S. military has completed its own planning for how American troops would conduct a variety of operations against Syria, or to assist neighboring countries in the event action was ordered, officials tell CNN.

In recent weeks, the Pentagon has finalized its assessment of what types of units would be needed, how many troops, and even the cost of certain potential operations, officials tell CNN.

The planning comes as the U.S. has become increasingly concerned that the violence in Syria is verging on civil war. Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the recent series of bombings have heightened the worry.

Dempsey said it reminded him of the escalating violence during the Iraq war.

The violence "gives us all pause that have been in Iraq and seen how these issues become sectarian and then they become civil wars and then they become very difficult to resolve," Dempsey told CNN in an exclusive interview on Thursday.

A senior U.S. official said the developments have been a matter of discussion in the Obama administration.

"There is a sense that if the sectarian violence in Syria grows, it could be worse than what we saw in Iraq," the official said.

The military planning includes a scenario for a no-fly zone as well as protecting chemical and biological sites. Officials say all the scenarios would be difficult to enact and involve large numbers of U.S. troops and extended operations.

The planning, officials insist, is being done protectively and there have been no orders for any action from the White House.

The U.S. Navy is maintaining a presence of three surface combatants and a submarine in the eastern Mediterranean to conduct electronic surveillance and reconnaissance on the Syrian regime, a senior Pentagon official said. The official emphasized that the U.S. routinely maintains this type of naval presence in the eastern Mediterranean, but acknowledged the current focus is on Syria.

The United States, Britain and France have all been discussing contingency scenarios, potential training and sharing of intelligence about what is happening in Syria with neighboring countries including Jordan, Turkey and Israel. But it is Jordan, so far, that is most seeking the help because of its relatively small military and potential need for outside help if unrest in southern Syria were to impact Jordan's security.

U.S. special forces are training and advising Jordanian troops on a range of specific military tasks they might need to undertake if unrest in Syria spills over into Jordan or poses a threat to that country, three Defense Department officials told CNN. The officials declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the training. Jordanian officials also are refusing to publicly confirm details, but a senior Middle Eastern government official also confirmed details to CNN.

The U.S. has been training in Jordan using mainly special operations forces under a program called Joint Combined Exchange Training, which sends troops overseas to train foreign soldiers and units in specific missions. Jordan's major security concern is that if the Syrian regime were to suddenly collapse, then it would face unrest on its northern border, as well as the possibility of large refugee flows, weapons smuggling into Jordan, and potential disarray in Syria's chemical and biological weapons complex. Jordan also is considering how and where to potentially set up humanitarian assistance bases inside its borders, another matter the U.S. is advising it on.

The Jordanians do not believe regime of Bashir al-Assad would attack them. But they have made it clear to the United States they want the training so they are ready to move quickly if any scenario develops that could destabilize their country, which is already reeling politically from a collapsing economy. While there's no formal agreement, one of the U.S. officials said the U.S. would come to the defense and support of Jordan in the event any of the Syria scenarios pose a challenge.

While there is no current scenario for putting U.S. troops on the ground in Jordan or Syria, the U.S. could wind up providing air support to move Jordanian troops to the border. In addition, American forces could provide a wide range of intelligence and surveillance capabilities to Jordan so they would have up-to-date information on what is happening on the Syrian side of their border region. In one of the most extreme scenarios, a small unit of Jordanian troops could move into Syria to protect a chemical or biological weapons site.

U.S. satellites are monitoring the chemical and biological weapons sites around the clock, and so far "there is no reason to believe they are not secure," one of the U.S. officials said.

The U.S. believes the facilities are guarded by some of the most elite Alawite troops loyal to al-Assad. But the official noted that the opposition forces appear to be gaining strength in some areas, and that the United States, Jordan and the allies are concerned that as the amount of al-Assad controlled territory shrinks, some of those critical facilities could be open to attacks, pilfering or efforts by terrorist groups to buy material.

"This is getting a fair amount of attention," another U.S. official told CNN. Also discussed with Jordanian forces was the possible need for U.S. chemical and biological weapons detecting equipment, the official said.

The overall assessment by the U.S. is that in the event some action had to be taken to secure Syrian chemical, biological or weapons facilities, troops from some country would have to enter Syria in a matter of hours.

This latest training is said to be separate from the recent multinational "Eager Lion 2012" training exercise that took place in Jordan.

During that exercise, U.S. and Jordanian troops also practiced many of the same scenarios, but the JCET training is much more focused, according to the officials.

http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2012/06/14/u-s-military-completes-planning-for-syria/

Let's hope the U.S. is not foolish enough to interfere, think Libya, Afghanistan, Pakistan.......has the situation improved in any of these Countries?

The UN has no teeth and as long as Russia and China continue to support Syria and Russia even supply Arms nothing can be done to help stop the
slaughter of innocents.

Panda wrote:
Let's hope the U.S. is not foolish enough to interfere, think Libya, Afghanistan, Pakistan.......has the situation improved in any of these Countries?

The UN has no teeth and as long as Russia and China continue to support Syria and Russia even supply Arms nothing can be done to help stop the
slaughter of innocents.

I think that under Obama, the US may be stupid enough to intervene. Remember, Obama has told Congress he doesn't need their approval to go to war.

AnnaEsse wrote:

Panda wrote:
Let's hope the U.S. is not foolish enough to interfere, think Libya, Afghanistan, Pakistan.......has the situation improved in any of these Countries?

The UN has no teeth and as long as Russia and China continue to support Syria and Russia even supply Arms nothing can be done to help stop the
slaughter of innocents.

I think that under Obama, the US may be stupid enough to intervene. Remember, Obama has told Congress he doesn't need their approval to go to war.

There is not one "invasion" by U.S. and British Troops which has helped the Country , 3 Brit soldiers killed in Afghanistan this week. Why is the Arab
League so impotent? The Middle East has become a cauldron and a tribal Warfare more than anything. We will never understand how they can treat
life so cheaply, nor their customs so should have left well alone.

U.N. suspends observer mission in SyriaBy the CNN Wire Staff
June 16, 2012 -- Updated 1222 GMT (2022 HKT)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
The United Nations says Syria poses too much of a risk for observers
The head of the mission says violence has intensified in the last few days
The escalation is limiting the ability of monitors to do their job
The monitors went in to ensure compliance to Kofi Annan's peace plan
(CNN) -- The United Nations suspended all activities in Syria on Saturday due to the escalating levels of violence, the head of the global body's mission said.

"There has been an intensification of armed violence across Syria over the past 10 days," said Gen. Robert Mood, head of the U.N. Supervision Mission in Syria.

"This escalation is limiting our ability to observe, verify, report as well as assist in local dialogue and stability projects -- basically impeding our ability to carry out our mandate," Mood said.

The situation, Mood said, was too high risk.

The U.N. monitors, whose number gradually rose to about 300, were sent in to ensure that both President Bashar al-Assad and opposition fighters were abiding by a six-point peace plan brokered by special envoy Kofi Annan.

A ceasefire took hold April 12 but only nominally, it turned out.

Violence has soared in recent days with reports of heavy government bombardment of town and chilling massacres of civilians.

On some occasions, the monitors themselves have come under fire.

"The lack of willingness by the parties to seek a peaceful transition, and the push towards advancing military positions is increasing the losses on both sides: innocent civilians, men women and children are being killed every day," Mood said.

He said U.N. observers will no longer be conducting patrols and will stay in their locations until further notice.

This suspension will be reviewed on a daily basis, Mood said.

Operations will resume when we see the situation fit for us to carry out our mandated activities.

Syrian opposition groups estimate that between 12,000 and 14,000 people have died in the months of uprising against al-Assad's rule.

i was surprised to read that on google news
IT SEEMS SOME SPANISH MERCENARTIES(SP?) HAVE BEEN KILLED IN SYRIA.

(CNN) -- Syrian opposition activists slammed the United Nations on Sunday for suspending its observer mission in the nation, saying it is "unjustifiable and unacceptable" for the international community to fail to protect civilians from attacks.

The United Nations said Saturday it is pulling back its unarmed monitors because escalating violence is limiting their ability to observe and verify reports, a major blow to a proposed peace plan.

The peace plan, brokered by international special envoy to Syria Kofi Annan, had become a symbol of hope for civilians under constant attacks during the 15-month uprising. Annan's plan included a provision for the warring sides to lay down their weapons.

"The decision of the U.N. supervision mission in Syria to suspend the monitoring mission represents a failure of ... the international community to effectively and responsibly deal with the situation in Syria," the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria said in a statement.

Violence has escalated in recent days, exacerbating an already risky situation for the about 300 monitors, said Gen. Robert Mood, who heads the U.N. supervision mission in Syria.

Observers will no longer conduct patrols and will stay in their locations until it is fit for them to resume their mandated activities, he said.

The U.N. sent its monitors to ensure that government and opposition fighters are abiding by the cease-fire and other elements of the peace plan.

However, both parties are not willing to seek a peaceful transition, leading to a rising death toll, including women and children, Mood said.

As the U.N. monitoring mission remains in limbo, more violence erupted Sunday, opposition activists said. At least 11 people were killed, including five in the capital of Damascus, according to the LCC.

Opposition members decried the timing of the mission's suspension and accused the international community of not having a game plan to help Syria, saying that only emboldens the regime.

"In the absence of any vision to push for an improvement in the situation, the current decision allows for more bloodshed and enables the regime to buy more time under international cover," the LCC said.

Syria blamed the uptick in violence -- and the decision to suspend the U.N. mission -- on "armed terrorist groups," a stance it has held consistently.

Syrian opposition groups estimate that more than 12,000 and 14,000 people have died since President Bashar al-Assad's government started cracking down on anti-government protesters last year.

There was a slow-down in killings when the cease-fire went into effect on April 12. But the pace picked up again, and the violence has soared in recent days with reports of heavy government bombardment on cities and chilling massacres of civilians.

U.N. monitors witnessed the aftermath of some recent violence. For example, some entered the town of Houla a day after opposition activists reported a slaughter there. They also arrived in Qubeir after an alleged massacre there, though they were late after being turned back at checkpoints.

A few days ago, U.N. teams were turned back as they tried to reach al Haffa, which had been under bombardment for eight days. By the time the monitors arrived, the town lay charred and deserted, with an overwhelming stench of death.

On some occasions, the monitors have come under fire.

In the United States, the Obama administration has renewed calls for the regime to uphold its commitment to the peace plan.

U.S. officials are working with allies "regarding next steps toward a Syrian-led political transition" without al-Assad, according to Tommy Vietor, a spokesman for the National Security Council.

"The sooner this transition takes place, the greater the chance of averting a lengthy and bloody sectarian civil war," he said.

CNN's Saad Abedine and Faith Karimi contributed to this report

Jun 17, 6:20 AM EDT


Syrian troops shell central city of Homs

BASSEM MROUE
Associated Press














BEIRUT (AP) -- Activists say Syrian troops have intensified their shelling of rebel-held neighborhoods in the central city of Homs as living conditions there deteriorate further.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Local Coordination Committees say the shelling killed at least one person on Sunday.

Activists say the city's besieged rebel-held areas have been under intense shelling and ground attacks for a week. The Observatory urged the U.N. to intervene and evacuate more than 1,000 Homs families, including women and children. It says their lives are in danger.

The latest shelling comes a day after U.N. observers suspended their patrols in Syria due to a recent spike in violence.

Activist say more than 14,000 people have been killed since the crisis in Syria began in March last year.

© 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin have urged an immediate end to violence in Syria.

In a joint statement following their first meeting since Mr Putin returned to the presidency, they said they shared a belief that Syrians should determine their own future.

The two countries have been at odds over how to resolve the crisis.

Russia and China have twice blocked US-backed UN draft resolutions critical of Syria.

Both countries argue that pushing the government from power using external pressure is unacceptable.

The meeting of the two leaders on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Los Cabos, Mexico came amid unconfirmed reports that two Russian ships were preparing to set sail for Syria.

The two amphibious vessels are apparently on a mission to protect Russian citizens and remove equipment if necessary from the naval base in Tartus.

BBC defence correspondent Jonathan Marcus says that, if confirmed, the deployment of the ships suggests that the Russians are taking prudent precautions in the event of the Syrian regime collapsing.

Meanwhile at least 52 people were killed in the latest violence across Syria, activists said.

Intense artillery fire was reported in several areas, including the cities of Homs and Deir Ezzor and the Damascus suburb of Douma.

'Common points'

Speaking after the two-hour meeting, Mr Obama said he and Mr Putin had pledged to work with "other international actors, including the United Nations, Kofi Annan, and all interested parties" to try to find a solution to the Syria crisis.

Mr Putin said the two countries had found "many common points" on Syria.

"In order to stop the bloodshed in Syria, we call for an immediate cessation of all violence," the leaders said in a joint statement.

"We are united in the belief that the Syrian people should have the opportunity to independently and democratically choose their own future."

The US and Russian leaders also warned Iran to comply fully with its international obligations over its controversial nuclear programme, calling for the "minimisation of the civilian use of highly enriched uranium".

And on the issue of missile defence, the two sides said they would work to resolve a dispute over US plans to deploy a shield in Europe.

Correspondents say there were no smiles between Mr Obama and Mr Putin during the news conference, and their interactions seemed stiff and strained.

19 June 2012 Last updated at 14:14 Share this pageEmail Print Share this page

Syrian government forces have been engaged in shelling Syrian towns on Tuesday, opposition sources say.

Bombardment was reported in the town of Rastan in Homs province, as well as areas near the capital, Damascus, including the suburb of Douma.

The latest violence comes as the head of the UN's observer mission in Syria prepared to brief the Security Council.

On Saturday, Maj Gen Robert Mood announced the suspension of the mission's patrols due to the violence.

The Local Co-ordination Committees (LCC), a network of activists in Syria, said Rastan had come under "fierce and continuous bombing" on Tuesday morning.

The LCC also reported "intense mortar shelling" on the Damascus suburb of Qudsiya.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said two people had died in shelling in the suburb of Douma.

Districts of the opposition stronghold of Homs were also reportedly coming under attack on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the Syrian government said it was willing to facilitate the evacuation of hundreds of civilians reportedly trapped by fighting in Homs.

Maj Gen Mood had earlier admitted "attempts to extract civilians" from the besieged city of Homs over the past week had been unsuccessful and urged warring parties to let them leave.

The government was willing "to extract the citizens... without any preconditions", but "armed terrorist groups' obstructions" meant this had not happened, the Syrian foreign ministry told state-run news agency Sana.

Russian role

Also on Tuesday, British marine insurance company Standard Club said it had withdrawn insurance from a Russian ship, the MV Alaed, because of the possibility it was carrying weapons to Syria.

"We were made aware of the allegations that the Alaed was carrying munitions destined for Syria. We have informed the ship owner that their cover ceased automatically in view of the nature of their voyage," the company said in a statement.

Opposition activists in Syria have condemned Russia's support for the regime during protests
The UK's Foreign Office said it was "aware of a ship carrying a consignment of refurbished Russian-made attack helicopters heading to Syria.

"The Foreign Secretary made clear to Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov when they met on 14 June that all defence shipments to Syria must stop," a Foreign Office spokesperson said.

"We are working closely with international partners to ensure that we are doing all we can to stop the Syrian regime's ability to slaughter civilians being reinforced through assistance from other countries," the spokesperson added.

However, on Tuesday, Russian foreign ministry spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: "Russia is not selling or delivering helicopters to Syria."

Russian specialists were only maintaining helicopters that were sold to Damascus "a very long time ago", Mr Peskov said.

The Russian news agency Interfax quoted a navy source on Tuesday as saying the ship Kaliningrad, part of the Baltic Fleet, was preparing for a trip in the Mediterranean, as part of which "the ship will visit the Syrian port of Tartus, where the Russian navy's logistics station is located".

The report comes a day after Interfax reported two amphibious vessels were apparently on a mission to protect Russian citizens and remove equipment if necessary from the naval base in Tartus.

BBC defence correspondent Jonathan Marcus says that, if confirmed, the deployment of the ships suggests the Russians are taking prudent precautions in the event of the Syrian regime collapsing.

'Common points'
US President Barack Obama's administration has been urging Russia to put pressure on Syria
After a meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit, US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin urged an immediate end to violence in Syria.

In a joint statement following their first meeting since Mr Putin returned to the presidency, they said they shared a belief that Syrians should determine their own future.

Mr Putin said the two countries had found "many common points" on Syria.

The two countries have been at odds over how to resolve the crisis.

Russia and China have twice blocked US-backed UN draft resolutions critical of Syria.

Both countries argue that pushing the government from power using external pressure is unacceptable.

Correspondents say there were no smiles between Mr Obama and Mr Putin during the news conference, and their interactions seemed stiff and strained.

(CNN) -- U.S.-Russian sniping over Syria's growing conflict isn't the early frost of a new Cold War, but it highlights the chilly spots that remain between the onetime foes, longtime observers say.

The Obama administration came into office promising a "reset" of relations with Moscow after the 2008 conflict between Russia and the former Soviet republic of Georgia, a prospective NATO ally. That helped pave the way for a new strategic arms control treaty, a revamping of U.S. missile defense plans that Russia opposed and greater Russian support for sanctions aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear development.

"I think that the good ties that are associated with the reset came from an analysis from both sides that there were issues where both sides had a set of common interests, and both sides could pursue those interests and do business with one another," said James Goldgeier, the dean of the American University School of International Service and a veteran Russian analyst.

G-20 nations must 'do what's necessary' to boost world economy, Obama says


Putin and Obama share a laugh at G-20
UN: Violence inhibiting work in Syria
U.N. suspends peace mission in Syria
Russia sends ship with weapons to Syria However, Goldgeier added, "What we've seen recently is there are still issues that divide the United States and Russia, on issues where there aren't common interests."

And topping that list today is Syria, where President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown on a popular uprising spawned by the "Arab Spring" revolts across the region now threatens to become a full-blown civil war. At least 10,000 people have been killed -- opposition groups say 13,000 -- and a U.N.-Arab League cease-fire plan has all but collapsed.

The United States, its Western allies and leading Arab states have condemned al-Assad, whose family has ruled Syria since 1971. But Russia has stood behind its longtime allies in Damascus, blocking action in the U.N. Security Council and warning against outside intervention on behalf of the opposition.

President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin met Monday on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Los Cabos, Mexico, and discussed the Syrian conflict. It was the first face-to-face talk between the two leaders since Putin returned to the president's office this year.

After the nearly two-hour talk, Obama said the two had "agreed that we need to see a cessation of the violence, that a political process has to be created to prevent civil war."

About a third of the session was devoted to Syria, said Mike McFaul, U.S. ambassador to Russia. Both Obama and Putin "wanted to make sure the other side of the table understood the true motivations for what they're trying to do and what they're trying not to do."

The tension between Washington and Moscow flared last week when U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused Russia of shipping helicopters to Syria, where opposition groups say they are being used against civilians. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Thursday that his government isn't selling al-Assad any equipment that could be used against protesters, just delivering air defense systems under contracts struck years ago -- though another Russian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told CNN that Russia is refurbishing older copters it had sold previously.

On Monday, U.K. marine insurer The Standard Club said it had stopped coverage for Russian operator Femco's cargo ship, MV Alaed, amid allegations that the ship is carrying weapons to Syria. Ship-tracking data showed the Alaed was off the northern coast of Scotland on Monday.

U.S. officials have said the ship is heading for Syria with attack helicopters and munitions. American officials said Friday they were tracking the Nikolay Filchenov, a Russian military cargo ship believed to be bound for Syria. RIA Novosti, Russia's state-run news agency, denied the report Monday, citing a source in the Black Sea Fleet as saying the Nikolay Filchenov remained docked at its base in Sevastopol.

Russia stood aside as the Security Council authorized international intervention in the Libyan revolt that toppled longtime strongman Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. But Syria "is a place where Russia has real interests at stake," said Matt Rojansky, deputy director of the Russia-Eurasia program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington.

"The problem for the Russians is Assad just isn't very effective," he said. Rather than crushing the revolt against him, "It seems that everything he does just inflames it even more." That gives the U.S. and its allies the opening to put more pressure on al-Assad, who took power after his father's death in 2000.

"The Russians would love to see those arguments go away and get back to geopolitics," Rojansky said. "But those arguments are not going to go away while more civilians are getting killed, and the Russians understand that."

'Entire families trapped under the rubble,' Syrian opposition says

Meanwhile, he said officials in Moscow see U.S. support for the Syrian opposition as another "encroachment" on their backyard.

"They see this in part of the same continuum of what's been happening in post-Soviet states over the past decade," Rojansky said. Previous American support for reform movements in former Soviet republics "creates a bunch of problems in the neighborhood," while the U.S. stance against Iran's nuclear program is seen as another push for "regime change," he said.

And Martin Indyk, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel and assistant secretary of state in the Clinton administration, told CNN's "Amanpour" program that the top Russian priority is "that at the end of the day, Syria not be taken out from the Russian column and put in the American column."

"We don't have a very good track record on reassuring them of that, because essentially, that's what we've gone around doing since the Cold War," he said. "So, there's a real mistrust of our intentions there, notwithstanding assurances that we might be trying to give there."

But neither side wants to see the Syrian conflict spread to neighboring countries such as Lebanon, which has been torn between pro- and anti-Syrian factions in recent years. And the United States needs Russian help with Iran, which has defied U.N. demands that it stop producing nuclear fuel amid Western and Israeli accusations that it is driving toward nuclear weapons.

Opinion: Why Putin can't be forced to deal

That could leave Washington in a grim position, Indyk said.

"It is a real irony that on the one hand, we're expecting Lavrov to go off to Tehran in these coming days and deliver a more flexible position on the part of Iranians towards the offer that's on the table in the nuclear talks that are going to take place in Moscow, in which we're heavily dependent on the Russians to cooperate with us and pressure the Iranians," he said. "And at the same time, we're beating them over the head for being too supportive of the Assad regime, particularly by providing these attack helicopters.

"It's a very hard balancing game, and there is this tension between them that is not easily reconciled," Indyk said. "So, ultimately, I think we're going to have to decide which one is more important to us. And I suspect that, at the end of the day, it will be the Iranian issue and the nuclear weapons programs we run that trumps concern about what's happening in Syria."

And Goldgeier said the Syrian crisis is a reminder that "fundamental differences" remain between the former Cold War antagonists, "and what's happening in Syria exposes the limits of the relationship between U.S. and Russia."

"It's not the Cold War. It's not going to be the Cold War," he said. But the dispute over Syria "could be as serious as the Georgian war, because it does expose a Russian approach that is fundamentally at odds with Western interests -- really, in this case everyone else's interests."

Syria-bound Russian cargo ship loses insurance

CNN's Tim Lister contributed to this report

20 June 2012 Last updated at 01:58 Share this pageEmail Print Share this page

The head of the UN observer mission in Syria has told the Security Council the observers were targeted by hostile crowds and gunfire before his decision to suspend operations, diplomats say.

They say Maj Gen Robert Mood said his 300 unarmed monitors had had at least 10 direct fire incidents, and nine vehicles were struck in the last week.

But he said his move did not mean the mission was abandoning Syrian people.

His comments come as government troops reportedly shelled several towns.

Opposition sources said that the town of Rastan, in Homs province, and areas near the capital, Damascus, were bombarded.

They said at least people reportedly died in Damascus' suburb of Douma.

The Local Co-ordination Committees (LCC), a network of activists in Syria, said Rastan had come under "fierce and continuous bombing" on Tuesday morning.

The LCC also reported "intense mortar shelling" in Qudsiya - another Damascus suburb.

Meanwhile, the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad said it was willing to facilitate the evacuation of hundreds of civilians reportedly trapped by fighting in Homs.

Maj Gen Mood had earlier admitted "attempts to extract civilians" from the besieged city of Homs over the past week had been unsuccessful and urged warring parties to let them leave.

The government was willing "to extract the citizens... without any preconditions", but "armed terrorist groups' obstructions" meant this had not happened, the Syrian foreign ministry told state-run news agency Sana.

'Arms shipment' row

Also on Tuesday, British marine insurance company Standard Club said it had withdrawn insurance from a Russian ship, the MV Alaed, because of the possibility it was carrying weapons to Syria.

"We were made aware of the allegations that the Alaed was carrying munitions destined for Syria. We have informed the ship owner that their cover ceased automatically in view of the nature of their voyage," the company said in a statement.

Opposition activists in Syria have condemned Russia's support for the regime during protests
The UK's Foreign Office said it was "aware of a ship carrying a consignment of refurbished Russian-made attack helicopters heading to Syria".

"The Foreign Secretary made clear to Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov when they met on 14 June that all defence shipments to Syria must stop," a Foreign Office spokesperson said.

"We are working closely with international partners to ensure that we are doing all we can to stop the Syrian regime's ability to slaughter civilians being reinforced through assistance from other countries," the spokesperson added.

Scottish authorities said the ship's course now appeared to be taking it back to Russia.

However, on Tuesday, Russian foreign ministry spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied Russia was "selling or delivering" helicopters to Syria, saying Russian specialists were only maintaining helicopters sold to Syria "a very long time ago".

The Russian defence ministry meanwhile denied reports that the ship Kaliningrad, part of the Baltic Fleet, was preparing for a trip in the Mediterranean, including the Syrian port of Tartus.

However, the ministry did not comment on an earlier report by Russian news agency Interfax saying two amphibious vessels were apparently on a mission to protect Russian citizens and remove equipment if necessary from the naval base in Tartus.

BBC defence correspondent Jonathan Marcus says that, if confirmed, the deployment of the ships suggests the Russians are taking prudent precautions in the event of the Syrian regime collapsing.

Civil war warning

Meawhile, US President Barack Obama held separate meetings at the G20 summit in Mexico with the leaders of Russia and China - the two nations that have blocked actions by the US and Europe to take action against the Damascus government at the UN.

He admitted that he had failed to make a breakthrough with Moscow and Beijing on the Syria issue.

"I wouldn't suggest that at this point the United States and the rest of the international community are aligned with Russia and China in their positions.

"But I do think they recognise the grave dangers of all-out civil war," Mr Obama said.

Russia and China have twice blocked US-backed UN draft resolutions critical of Syria.

Both countries argue that pushing the government from power using external pressure is unacceptable

(CNN) -- Syria's government has not only had to contend with terrorists, but also with journalists bent on misrepresenting the news, according to a political and media adviser to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

"Inciting sectarian wars, fabricating facts about what's happening in our country," Bouthaina Shaaban told Russia Today, a government-supported television news channel, in an interview on Tuesday. "There are many people who believe what has been put on the news and it affects them very negatively. Unfortunately the media war, throughout history, could be very damaging and very effective."

Shaaban alluded to reports from international news organizations that the Syrian government has sharply limited access to the country by foreign journalists, citing those claims as examples of misinformation. "It is not true that we don't give access to foreign journalists," she said. "Hundreds of Russian journalists came, hundreds of foreign journalists from all over the world: from India, China, Europe, from the U.S., from all over the world -- so, it's not true that journalists are not given access to Syria. But, also there are tens, at least, of satellite channels who made themselves part of the war on Syria."

Fighting rages in Syria; 52 more said killed

With rare exceptions, CNN's repeated and continuing requests to travel and report freely inside Syria have been declined.


Jimmy Carter on Egypt and Syria
Former U.S. soldier aids Syria's wounded
Should the U.S. intervene in Syria? Syrian government officials have routinely said that terrorist groups and not government military forces are to blame for much of the violence that has wracked the country since March 2011. Asked to identify the countries that have been arming these terrorist groups, Shaaban refused to answer the question. "The Syrian government is not the issue, the issue is Syria, that is the issue, because when you have people from our army, people from our police, civilian people, women and children, killed by tens every day, when you have our factories burned and attacked, when you have our schools targeted, when you have our roads being obstructed by terrorists, then you are having a problem for the country and for the Syrian people.

"The issue is not the Syrian government, the issue is the unity and safety and sovereignty and prosperity of Syria."

Pressed to identify the groups, she said, "We do not know who these people are, we do not know to whom they belong. There is not a single leadership. I mean you can ask the U.N. forces and they would say to you this is the most difficult problem in Syria, that you don't know who your adversary is."

Shaaban reiterated a comment made by other Syrian officials, that Damascus still holds hope that the peace plan put forth by Arab League-U.N. Joint Special Envoy Kofi Annan will succeed. Observers have accused government forces of flouting it.

"It is in our national interest to cooperate with the Kofi Annan plan because the first item in the Kofi Annan plan is to put an end to violence from all sides and in all its forms," she said.

Monitors to stay in Syria, U.N. says

Syria exposes cool spots in U.S.-Russia ties

22 June 2012 Last updated at 15:45 Share this pageEmail Print Share this page

At least 25 people have been killed and their bodies mutilated by "terrorists" in northern Syria, state media report.

The Sana state news agency cited sources as saying the victims had been abducted earlier on Friday from Darat Izza, a village in Aleppo province.

Activists said 26 government supporters had been shot dead by rebels.

The joint UN-Arab League envoy on Syria Kofi Annan said it was "time for countries of influence to raise the level of pressure" over Syria.

Mr Annan, who has seen his six-point plan to end the conflict unravelled by violence, said the time to act was now - the process could not be open-ended.

Russia's foreign minister met his Syrian counterpart earlier urging Damascus to do more to implement Mr Annan's peace plan, under which a ceasefire came into force in April.

The UN says 1.5 million people are in need of humanitarian aid in Syria - an increase of 500,000 on its previous estimate.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said more and more were fleeing their homes because of the fighting between security forces and rebels, and that it was seriously hampering aid deliveries.

In other developments:

Turkey's military says it has lost contact with one of its aircraft over the sea close to the border with Syria - Turkish media say the F-4 jet crashed in Syria or Syrian territorial waters
The head of the Syrian Olympic Committee is refused a visa to travel to the UK to attend the Games
'Massacre'

A video purportedly showing the aftermath of the killings in Darat Izza, which was posted online on Friday, showed the bodies of more than a dozen men piled on top of each other. At least two of the victims were wearing uniform.


"These are shabiha of Bashar al-Assad's regime," the narrator said, referring to the opposition's name for pro-government militiamen.

The official sources cited by state TV and Sana did not say if those killed had been supporters of the president, only describing them as "citizens".

"The sources confirmed that the terrorist groups in Darat Izza committed a brutal massacre against the citizens, whom they had kidnapped earlier on the day, through shooting them dead and then mutilating their bodies."

"The sources added that initial information indicates that more than 25 of the kidnapped citizens were killed in Darat Izza massacre, with the fate of the rest of the kidnapped people is still unknown," Sana reported.

The government and state media refer to the rebels as terrorists.

Four senior army officers announced their defection to the opposition in a video posted online
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 26 "supporters of the regime - believed to be militiamen - were shot dead".

It added that the area had been under bombardment by government troops for several weeks as they try to regain areas controlled by rebels.

Activists also said at least 10 people had been killed in the city of Aleppo on Friday when troops opened fire with machine-guns on an anti-government protest.

The Syrian Observatory also reported that four senior army officers - two brigadiers and two colonels - had defected and published a video purportedly showing them declaring that they were joining the opposition.

On Thursday, a fighter pilot flew his MiG-21 jet to a military airbase in neighbouring Jordan, where he was given asylum. It was the first time a Syrian air force pilot has defected with his plane since the protests against President Assad began in March 2011.

The UN says at least 10,000 people have died since pro-democracy protests began in March 2011. In April, the Syrian government reported that 6,143 Syrian citizens had been killed by "terrorist groups".

Medical concerns

The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Friday that the number of people needing humanitarian assistance had risen to 1.5 million. They included 350,000 in the northern province of Idlib and 250,000 in the central city of Homs, it added.

The international Red Cross believes hundreds of people are trapped in Homs
The UN's World Food Programme (WFP) had distributed food to 461,000 people by mid-June and planned to reach 850,000 in July, it added.

The BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva says the world's biggest aid agencies have been virtually powerless to help those in need of assistance in Syria.

An agreement between the UN and the Syrian government on mounting a major aid operation, announced only two weeks ago, has so far not got off the ground, our correspondent says.

The OCHA had planned to set up field offices in Homs and in the eastern city of Deir al-Zour, but it said the deteriorating security situation meant those plans were on hold.

Medical care is a particular concern, our correspondent adds. A World Health Organisation (WHO) assessment of Syrian hospitals found half were not fully functioning.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - the only international aid agency operating in Syria - is still waiting to enter Homs, where it is believed hundreds of people, many of them wounded in recent shelling by the military, are trapped.

TURKISH PLANE SHOT DOWN OVER SYRIA?
SYRIA APOLOGIES
DIDN'T QUITE HEAR WHAT WAS SAID

ITS BEEN CONFIRMED THAT SYRIA SHOT DOWN A TURKISH FIGHTER JET.
TURKISH CABINET HAS HAD AN EMERGENCY MEETING TO DISCUSS THIS.