Syria warns West against intervention

Syrian Prime Minister Riad Hijab has defected from President Bashar al-Assad's government, to join "the revolution", his spokesman says.

Mr Hijab was appointed less than two months ago and his departure is the highest-profile defection since the uprising began in March 2011.

His family is reported to have fled Syria with him.

A Sunni Muslim, Riad Hijab comes from the Deir al-Zour area of eastern Syria which has been caught up in the revolt.

Continue reading the main story
Riad Farid Hijab
Born in 1966 in Deir al-Zour, eastern Syria
Married, with four children
Holds a PhD in agriculture
Joined the local branch of the Ba'ath Party command in 1998
Named governor of the southern province of Qunaytira in 2008
Transferred to head the Latakia governorate around the time protests were first reported - credited in state media with negotiating an end to a sit-in
Appointed minister of agriculture on 14 April 2011

His spokesman Mohammed el-Etri told al-Jazeera TV that he was in a safe location.

Mr Hijab is the first cabinet minister to defect. The BBC's Dale Gavlak in Jordan says the development underscores the cracks in the regime which are reaching beyond military ranks.

A month ago, Brig Gen Manaf Tlas, who was considered close to President Assad, also defected.

Thirty other generals have crossed the border into Turkey.

The prime minister's dismissal was reported by Syrian state TV, which gave no immediate explanation.

His replacement, Omar Ghalawanji, will reportedly lead a caretaker government.

Hours earlier, state TV said a bomb had gone off on the third floor of the Syrian state TV and radio building in Damascus, wounding three people.

===============================

There has been a few Syrian Goverment Ministers and Military defecting recently , is it because they do not agree with Assad's treatment of his subjects, that there will be a full scale Civil War, or that the U.N. will HAVE to intervene because of the mass immigrations of Syrians to Turkey, Jordan and The Lebanon . This is a tragedy and against tanks
and bombs I don't see how the rebels can win.

Stuart Ramsay

Chief Correspondent

More from Stuart | Follow Stuart on Twitter

Fighter jets scream in an almost vertical dive unleashing bombs and machine gun rounds into the heart of Aleppo.

The noise and the percussion waves from the explosions are sickening. Day and night.

Helicopters strafe Fee Syrian Army (FSA) fighter positions while selecting targets for the Russian-made MIG jets' continuous sorties.

In the target zones, where they are strongest, the FSA scamper to hide their spoils.

A tank is moved under the dubious protection of a tree line while trucks with heavy machine guns bolted to the back, career around the streets in a deadly game of cat and mouse; trying to claim the prize of a jet while still staying alive.

In the midst of this millions of people remain in greater Aleppo.

Many have gone or are trying to; loading up cars and flatbeds with all their possessions and heading out of town through the fighting. But they remain a minority.

Most are struggling to continue to live in the embattled city. They queue for bread for a minimum of three hours at a time.

Armed FSA fighters maintain order in the bread lines, while inside the few bakeries working they urge the packers to work more quickly.


A Free Syrian Army fighter takes aim in the rubble of Salah al Din, Aleppo

Basic foodstuffs and fuel have rocketed in price; only the bread remains at a set figure and only because the FSA is keeping the price down.

The residents seem less than convinced by the ongoing revolution and none would talk on camera.

They are scared that if they are even seen with foreigners they will be labelled as supporters of the revolution if the army takes control of the city; most think it inevitable.

"I have seven children, no money, no car, no way to leave," one man told me. He speaks for thousands.

The aerial attacks seem to be a precursor to a greater assault on the city by Syrian forces.

As many as 20,000 soldiers are reported to have been deployed from around the country to retake all of Aleppo. They are supported by tanks, artillery and of course from the skies.

In the former headmaster's office of a school, now the central command centre for the FSA, I met the two main commanders for the FSA in Aleppo and its surrounding districts.

Hajji Mare and Hajji Tar Afat, names depicting their home towns, have taken on an almost mythical status amongst the FSA. They have overseen the infiltration of the city and masterminded its defence.

Both businessmen, they have no military experience; but they command, with calm authority, fighters with undying loyalty.


Boys run past a bullet-riddled building in al Tareb, near Aleppo

"We hope to hold on but it is going to be very difficult," Hajji Mare conceded.

"But the Syrian army is being stretched. It is demoralised. They don't want to come and fight. They are fighting in Homs, Hama, Dera, Idlib and Damascus, but the government has said that Aleppo is the most important. So it will be hard," he said.

The civilian and FSA casualties from the aerial bombardment are growing.

In one incident 50 or 60 were hurt from flying shrapnel.

They are taken to one of the few working hospitals, the Accident and Emergency area awash with blood, as doctors who risk death for treating the FSA, deal with dozens at a time.

"I am here because of humanity," a doctor told me. "We won't bow to this regime."

At night, risking government snipers, protesters take to the streets near the ancient Citadel at its centre. Many are very, very young and they are watched by an overwhelming number who simply don't join in.

Prosperous Aleppo remained aloof from the revolution for a long time, but it is now at its very core.

The fate of this city and the government are entwined. The regime must win here and they likely will this time.

But the tipping point has been reached, Aleppo won't stay with the government forever; it's a matter of when, not if it falls, along with Basher al Assad.

President Assad has not been seen on Syrian television for several weeks
Continue reading the main story

Syria conflict

• Fear and hunger in Aleppo
  
• The rise of jihadist groups
  
• Fighting and refugees in maps
  
• Aleppo's battleground school
  

Syrian TV has broadcast footage apparently showing President Bashar al-Assad meeting Iran's security chief, the first time he has been seen on state television for several weeks.

His appearance came a day after Prime Minister Riad Hijab defected to the opposition.

Arriving in Damascus, Iran's security chief Saeed Jalili said only a "Syrian solution" would end the crisis.

Iran is President Assad's staunchest regional ally.

Tehran says it is planning an international meeting on Syria on Thursday.

It is also trying to secure the release of a group of Iranians abducted by rebels from a bus in Damascus on Saturday.

As well as Mr Jalili's visit to Damascus, Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi is travelling to Turkey for talks in Ankara.

Continue reading the main story
Analysis


Mohsen Asgari BBC News, Tehran

---

Experts on Iran's military back Tehran's assertion that none of the 48 Iranians abducted by the rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA) is a member of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC).

If the IRGC had been operating in Syria covertly, they argue they would not have carried military ID cards, pictures of which were purportedly shown in an FSA video.

All Iranians who have completed military service carry such ID cards, they say. "Those cards shown on the video clip have IRGC insignia and the commander's signature simply because they completed their military service at IRGC, like many Iranians," one expert told the BBC.

The FSA video also showed several old men among the captured Iranians. Analysts consider it unlikely that the IRGC's elite overseas operations arm, the Quds Force, would send elderly personnel on such a sensitive mission.

Iran's defence minister has insisted that it does not have any military personnel inside Syria, although the US has accused the Quds Force of complicity in the repression of the Syrian people.
'US held responsible'
An unconfirmed report from the rebels has suggested that three of the 48 hostages they are holding have been killed by army shelling.

Mr Jalili, who heads Iran's supreme national security council and is considered a senior aide to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had travelled to Damascus from Lebanon.

He told reporters that "kidnapping innocent people is not acceptable anywhere", Iran's official news agency Irna reported.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian has said it holds the US responsible for the hostages' safety.

He said the US was supporting "terrorist groups" and despatching weapons to Syria, and was therefore responsible for the lives of those abducted.

The rebels have claimed that the group are members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard. Tehran says they are pilgrims who had been heading for a Shia religious site.
'Business as usual'
Syria's caretaker Prime Minister Omar Ghalawanji headed an emergency cabinet meeting on Monday, stressing that all the ministers were there. He was due to chair a further session on Tuesday.

Continue reading the main story
Riad Farid Hijab

• Born in 1966 in Deir al-Zour, eastern Syria
  
• Married with four children
  
• Holds a PhD in agriculture
  
• Joined the local branch of the Baath Party command in 1998
  
• Named governor of the southern province of Qunaytira in 2008
  
• Transferred to head the Latakia governorate around the time protests were first reported - credited in state media with negotiating an end to a sit-in
  
• Appointed minister of agriculture on 14 April 2011
  

The BBC's Jim Muir, in neighbouring Lebanon, said state media were giving the impression of it being business as usual in Damascus.

Opposition activists said that apart from the prime minister, two other ministers had also defected and a third - Finance Minister Mohammad Jalilati - was arrested as he tried to escape.

But footage of the cabinet on state TV showed two of the ministers who had supposedly defected and Syria's information minister played down the significance of Mr Hijab's departure.

"We haven't heard anything from the former prime minister and he didn't appear on TV," Omran al-Zoubi was quoted as saying by Syrian state news agency Sana.

Syria was a state of institutions, the information minister said, and the flight of some of its individuals would not affect the state, however prominent they were.

But reports of defections have continued, with Turkey's foreign ministry announcing on its Twitter feed that a general was among more than 1,300 refugees who fled across the border overnight.

The number of Syrians who have crossed into Turkey has risen to 47,500, Ankara says.
'Safe location'
Riad Hijab, appointed as prime minister less than two months ago, is the most prominent Syrian figure to defect so far.

Although his whereabouts are unclear, his spokesman appeared on al-Jazeera TV in neighbouring Jordan saying that the prime minister had fled Syria with his family and was in "a safe location".

Civilians have become caught up in further clashes in the northern city of Aleppo
France said the Assad government was "doomed" and White House spokesman Jay Carney said such high-level defections signalled that President Assad's grip on power was "loosening".

On the ground in Syria, clashes have been reported in Aleppo and the army is said to have stepped up its bombardment of the northern city.

Government forces are trying to dislodge rebel fighters who have taken control of up to half of Aleppo.

Opposition activists report intense attacks on rebel-held areas on the north-east and south-west sides of the city.

State media said troops had clashed with "terrorists" in several places inflicting heavy losses.

Further deaths were reported in Damascus on Tuesday. Syrian state news agency Sana said a "terrorist hideout" had been stormed by security forces.

British-based activist group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 270 people were killed across Syria on Monday. It said 61 civilians died in Aleppo province alone.

Activists estimate more than 20,000 people have died since the uprising against President Assad began in March last year.

Reports of casualties often cannot be independently verified as the movement of foreign journalists is severely restricted in Syria

Should any of the Iranians taken hostage by rebels in Syria be harmed, America should expect Iran’s intelligence agents to respond in kind, the Islamic regime has warned.

Forty-eight Iranians were seized Saturday in Damascus by rebels seeking to overthrow Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime. Iran claims they are pilgrims, but Abdel Nasser Shemir, a rebel commander, in an interview with the news organization Al Arabiya, charged they were members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards whose confiscated documents proved as much.

“They are 48, in addition to an Afghani interpreter,” Shemir said, alleging that the captives were members of a 150-strong group sent by Iran for “reconnaissance on the ground.”

Iran quickly blamed America, Saudi Arabia and Qatar for the kidnapping.

Hours after the abduction, Ali Larijani, the speaker of the Iranian Parliament, said that, “America and certain countries of the region are responsible for these crimes, and they will receive the appropriate response at the right time.”

A media outlet called “The Youth Reporter’s Club,” which is run by the Revolutionary Guards intelligence unit, also blamed America for the abduction, stating that America, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are involved in the events in Syria and that Iran is ready to “change the proxy war into a direct confrontation on an immediate basis.”

The statement warned America that should any of the abducted Iranians be harmed, Iran will harm America and Americans.

Another statement that appeared on the site IranNuc.ir, which reflects the opinion of the regime, declared that Iran holds America directly responsible for the abductions. That message was given to the Swiss ambassador in Iran, who acts on behalf of America’s interest because the two countries have no diplomatic relations. The statement warned that, although America has not reacted to the claim, Iran is ready to immediately attack America.

This warning would mean that Iranian terror cells, along with the terrorist organization Hezbollah, could attack America’s interests and take Americans hostage. Such a terrorist threat recalls the Marine barracks bombing in Lebanon, the Khobar Towers bombing in Saudi Arabia and the abduction, torture and murder of the CIA station chief in Beirut, William Buckley, in 1985. Dozens of Americans and Europeans were systematically taken hostage between 1982 and 1992.

The kidnapping of the 48 Iranians occurred as the Assad regime claimed it was in full control of Damascus, despite heavy fighting in the capital.

Iranian leaders have continuously warned against “foreign intervention” in Syria.

Speaker Larijani accused America of providing military support to the rebels. “The fire that has been ignited in Syria will take fearful (Israelis) with it,” Larijani said Sunday, as quoted by the Islamic Republic News Agency.

Days ago, Iran dispatched Saeed Jalili, the senior aide to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to Damascus, where he held meetings with Syria’s top officials, including Assad. Jalili discussed the rebellion in Syria and the need for a quick release of the abducted Iranians, and said Syria was an essential part of an “axis of resistance” to Israel and the West.

Iran has formed a joint war room with Syria and Hezbollah and has warned that any outside aggression against Syria would be met with a heavy missile response from the three, with Israel facing the brunt of it.

As reported recently, according to a source within the Revolutionary Guards intelligence unit, Iran is preparing to attack Saudi Arabia should Assad’s regime be in danger of falling to the rebels.

“Dozens of Iranian ballistic missiles have been programmed to hit Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, as wells as Qatar,” the source added.

http://www.wnd.com/2012/08/iran-threatens-u-s-over-abductions-by-syrian-rebels/?cat_orig=us

9 August 2012 Last updated at 09:21

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Syria conflict: Aleppo districts 'under fresh assault'


Both sides claimed to be in control of the Salah al-Din district of Aleppo
Continue reading the main story

Syria conflict

• Fear and hunger in Aleppo
  
• The rise of jihadist groups
  
• Fighting and refugees in maps
  
• Aleppo's battleground school
  

The Syrian city of Aleppo has come under fresh bombardment, activists say, as the government attempts to retake districts seized by rebel fighters.

Several areas of the city were reported to have come under attack, including strafing from helicopter gunships.

The fighting comes as Iran prepares to host its own international meeting on the Syrian crisis.

Iran, Syria's only regional ally, says it will be attended by countries with a "realistic" position on the crisis.

But it is unclear exactly which countries will be attending the summit, held in Tehran.

Western governments have expressed scepticism that Tehran can mediate, because of its close relationship with the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Conflicting claims
On Wednesday, Syria's state military launched a large operation to retake Aleppo from the rebel fighters, who overran some districts three weeks ago.

The fighting was concentrated on the strategic Salah al-Din district, a densely-packed area of narrow streets.

Aleppo is Syria's largest city, and Salah al-Din is considered a vital supply route for government troops coming from the south.

State media has insisted that the army is now in full control of the district, reporting that hundreds of "terrorist mercenaries" had been arrested or killed.

The Free Syrian Army says it launched counter-attacks in Aleppo
But the Free Syrian Army said it had launched a counter-attack and retaken the district, and that government forces had retreated after suffering heavy losses, with tanks and armoured vehicles destroyed.

There were reports of further clashes overnight in the districts of Hanano, Saif al-Dawla, Shaar and Shakur, said the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, quoted by the AFP news agency.

The Local Co-ordination Committees network of activists also reported shelling and gunfire in several districts.

The Syrian Observatory said at least 26 people were killed in the city on Wednesday - it said they were among 130 people killed across the country.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said the foreign ministers' summit in Tehran will be a gathering of countries with "a correct and realistic position" on the Syrian conflict.

He said it would be an opportunity "to replace military clashes with political, indigenous approaches to settle the disputes".

Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi was quoted by state media as saying "12 to 13 countries from Asia, Africa and Latin America" would be taking part, but did not name them.

Kuwait's foreign ministry told al-Seyassah newspaper it would not be sending a representative. Lebanon has also said it will not attend while Russia is sending its ambassador and not Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

The BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut says this is a meeting of people who are already close to Tehran and to the Syrian regime.

There is deep scepticism in the West about Iran assuming a peacemaker role, given its recent strong commitments to the survival of the Assad government, our correspondent adds.

Earlier this week, Iran's security chief Saeed Jalili visited President Assad in Damascus, to pledge Tehran's support.

Mr Jalili said Syria was a one part of a vital regional alliance which he described as the "axis of resistance", which Tehran would not allow to be broken.

• Fighting in Damascus
  
• Fighting in Aleppo
  
• Refugee camps
  

Syrian Rebels Stage Counter-Attack In Aleppo


Syrian rebels said they mounted a counter-attack against regime forces in embattled Aleppo - retaking part of a contested district.


10:46pm UK, Wednesday 08 August 2012



Video: Syria: Images Of 'Heavy Shelling'
Enlarge


New images show shell damage in Syria's second city as hundreds continue to flee Aleppo for nearby Turkey.

Video: Sky's David Bowden Reports on Conflict In Aleppo
Enlarge

• Fierce clashes have broken out in Salaheddin and Bustan al Qasr districts in the northern city, where bitter fighting has taken place since July 20.
  

A rebel commander said fighters responded to a Syrian army assault and pushed troops loyal to President Bashar al Assad out of the area.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebels were making gains, but state television claimed "armed forces dealt violent blows to the mercenary terrorists".

Earlier, rebel fighters abandoned positions in Salaheddin as they ran low on bullets and government forces encircled the area at the southern entrance to the city.

Amnesty International images revealed more than 600 craters, which were likely caused by artillery shells, the organisation said.
A close-up shows the damage next to a residential housing complex
An image from July 31 shows probable artillery impact craters next to what appears to be a residential housing complex in Anadan, a town northwest of Aleppo.

Amnesty said the images raise urgent concerns about the welfare of civilians and has warned both sides fighting in the city that they may be held criminally accountable for their failure to protect civilians.

The group's US emergency response manager, Christoph Koetti, said: "Amnesty International is sending a clear message to both sides in the fighting: any attacks against civilians will be clearly documented so that those responsible can be held accountable.

"Turning Syria's most populous city into a battlefield will have devastating consequences for civilians. The atrocities in Syria are mounting already.

"The Syrian military and the opposition fighters must both adhere to international humanitarian law, which strictly forbids the use of tactics and weapons that fail to distinguish between military and civilian targets."

Meanwhile, Iran reiterated its support for Syrian President Bashar al Assad by sending a senior envoy to the Syrian capital Damascus.
A truck on fire near what is believed to be a civilian manned road block
Saeed Jalili, head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said Tehran would not let its close partnership with the Syrian leadership be shaken by the uprising.

He said Iran would not allow the "axis of resistance" - a reference to itself, Syria, Hizbollah and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas - to be broken.

Iran also expressed fears for 48 Iranians it says are religious pilgrims kidnapped by rebels from a bus in Damascus while visiting Shi'ite shrines

Clashes continue after deadly day in Syria



By the CNN Wire Staff
August 10, 2012 -- Updated 0757 GMT (1557 HKT)









Rebels: We can fight them and win



STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• More than 100 people were killed Thursday in Syria, opposition groups said
  
• Groups report shelling and clashes in many cities Friday
  
• Iran calls meeting about Syrian crisis a success
  

(CNN) -- Shelling and clashes continued in many areas of Syria Friday, a day after opposition groups said at least 134 people were killed.

Residents reported intense shelling in a village in Hama, according to the Local Coordination Committees of Syria, a Syrian-based opposition activist network. There was also shelling and fierce clashes between regime forces and rebels in two neighborhoods in Homs, the LCC reported. Witnesses also reported shelling in Aleppo, Syria's largest city, the group reported.

The Syrian government and rebel groups have been battling for days to control Aleppo, a key front in a conflict that has morphed into a civil war since government forces began cracking down on peaceful protesters in March 2011.

Roughly 17,000 people have been killed since the fighting began, the United Nations said last month. The opposition has put the toll at more than 20,000.

Countries in the West and the Middle East have been critical of President Bashar al-Assad's regime but have not intervened militarily.

Iran, a supporter of the al-Assad regime, hosted a conference on the conflict Thursday in Tehran.

Among the representatives of more than two dozen countries attending were the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Zimbabwe and Iraq, state-run Islamic Republic News Agency said. China and Russia, also allies of Damascus, were among the nations to send delegates to the conference.

But nations critical of the regime, such as the United States, France, Britain, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, were absent.

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi called the meeting a success, Iran's state-run news agency IRNA reported Friday.

"Attendance of more than 30 countries at the conference shows its success and we hope that more countries whose policies correspond and are in line with Iran's diplomacies attend similar conferences in the future," the foreign minister said, according to IRNA.

George Sabra, a spokesman for the opposition Syrian National Council, disagreed.

"When the Iranians talk about their readiness to host a meeting between the regime and the various opposition factions in Tehran, they forget that the problem in Syria is not about finding a place to initiate a national dialogue, the main problem is to stop the regime from mass murdering innocent civilians and shelling every city in Syria," Sabra said.

if(typeof CNN.expElements==='object'){CNN.expElements.init();}

CNN's Saad Abedine contributed to this report.

August 2012 Last updated at 15:38

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Syrian unrest: Aleppo clashes spark rise in refugees


Rebel fighters have vowed to retake territory in Aleppo after retreating on Thursday
Continue reading the main story

Syria conflict

• Fear and hunger in Aleppo
  
• The rise of jihadist groups
  
• Fighting and refugees in maps
  
• Aleppo's battleground school
  

Syrian civilians are fleeing the city of Aleppo in increasing numbers, the UN says, amid a lull in fighting between rebels and government forces.

The UN refugee agency says it has now registered almost 150,000 refugees in four neighbouring countries.

It said 6,000 had crossed into Turkey in the past week, many of them from the Aleppo area.

Earlier, the UK announced it was giving an extra £5m ($7.8m) in non-lethal equipment to the Free Syrian Army.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said the support would include more radio and satellite equipment, as well as portable power generators.
Salah al-Din vow
Adrian Edwards, spokesman for the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), told reporters: "There certainly in the past week has been a sharp increase in the numbers arriving in Turkey, and many of the people are coming from Aleppo and surrounding villages.

"If you look at other areas, I think that the situation is more of a steady and continued increase, but where fighting happens we tend to see the consequences," he said.

The agency says there are now 50,227 refugees registered in Turkey; 45,869 in Jordan; 36,841 in Lebanon and 13,730 in Iraq.

"In several countries we know there to be substantial refugee numbers who have not yet registered," Mr Edwards said.

In Aleppo, rebels vowed to fight back after being largely ousted from the strategic south-west district of Salah al-Din on Thursday.

The Free Syrian Army withdrew after intense shelling by tanks and jet fighters.




William Hague: "Aid would include providing trauma and medical supplies, communications equipment and body armour"

"We will not let Salah al-Din go," FSA commander Abu Mohammed told AFP by telephone.

UK-based activist group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said government forces had also bombed Sakhur and Hananu in the east of the city.

Journalists from Reuters news agency reported seeing residents streaming out of Aleppo with cars packed with possessions, taking advantage of the calm spell.

AFP news agency reported that a bakery in the eastern Tariq al-Bab district had been hit by a shell, killing about 12 people and injuring at least 20.

State news agency Sana also reported that government forces had repelled a rebel attack on Aleppo's international airport.

The opposition Syrian National Council said part of Aleppo's 13th-century citadel had been damaged by shelling.

Activists also reported fighting in suburbs of the capital, Damascus.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is resisting international pressure to step down despite months of anti-government protests that have given way to civil war.

He has faced a string of high-status defections, including his former Prime Minister Riad Hijab, who fled to Jordan earlier this week.

Meanwhile, US officials travelling with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Washington was preparing fresh sanctions against the Assad regime.

They are expected to target members of President Assad's inner circle, along with Iranian individuals and organisations believed to be supporting the regime.

Mrs Clinton will be in Turkey this weekend and the Syrian crisis is expected to dominate talks.

David Bowden

Senior News Correspondent

More from David | Follow David on Twitter


Hundreds of Syrians who have fled the fierce fighting in the northern city of Aleppo fear they may still be targeted by government airstrikes.

In a primary school in the town of Souran, just a few miles outside Aleppo, 25 families including dozens of children have taken refuge from the civil war.

They wave their arms around in swooping motions and simulate explosions to illustrate what happened to them in their homes in Aleppo.

One man said his neighbour's house was completely demolished by a shell and a woman with eight children and a grandchild explained how a round exploded in the street right outside her house.

Many of the children wake up crying with nightmares about what they have seen and heard in the past few days.
A car damaged during a shelling by forces loyal to President Assad
One of the refugees is 20-year-old mum, Om Mohammad, who is cradling her six-week-old son as she tells me she is so traumatised by what she has been through she can no longer suckle her baby.

Her mother Om Juma has her eight children with her in the school. Her eldest son is 22, the youngest, another son, is just two. In all she has four sons and four daughters - all are frightened of what might be still to come.

In the nearby town of Tall Rifat, night after night the settlement is targeted by air strikes. In one of the strikes, locals tell us a family of seven was killed.

In the same attack, a school compound next door was hit by two rockets, leaving huge craters in what used to be the playground.

Sleeping in the classrooms just metres away, opposition fighters including "Tony," a student from Manchester, who described how the force of the blast picked him up and threw him against the wall.
FSA rebels show no signs of backing down
Pointing to the bomb crater, he explained: "I was here when the bomb lands over here and I get on the floor, after that another rocket comes over.

"I was flying because the bomb was strong enough, I fly over and pound the wall."

Tony has only been in Syria three weeks and has already seen action in Idlib and will soon be on the front line in Aleppo.

He says he is planning to go back to his dentistry course at the start of next term in Manchester. But, on the day he was telling of his miraculous escape, three fellow rebel fighters were being buried in the town and nearby. All of them killed in Aleppo just hours earlier.

Many more will die in the coming days as neither the Free Syrian Army or the government forces loyal to Bashar al Assad show any signs of backing down.

=================================

The destruction of Syria is immense and whoever wins, the rebuiling of homes , rads, shops etd will be paramount. I do

feel sorry for the refugees , most women and children who don't even know if their Fathers are alive , and of course the

Families of the dead.

Sky News Live 15 August 2012

• 
  

Syria: Bomb Explodes Near UN Hotel In Damascus


Activists report a huge plume of smoke over the capital after the blast, which is said to have injured three people..


8:05am UK, Wednesday 15 August 2012

The UN mission was sent to Syria to monitor the six-point peace plan

Smoke was seen rising over the capital

• 
  

A bomb has exploded in Damascus near a hotel used by UN observers, wounding at least three people, according to Syrian state TV.

It said the bomb was planted on a fuel lorry.

The blast occured in the car park of a military compound near the Dama Rose Hotel, an AP reporter said. The hotel and a Labour Union building across the road were both damaged.

An opposition activist in the capital saw smoke rising from the scene and ambulances arriving to treat the wounded.

None of the victims were believed to be members of the UN mission sent to Syria to monitor former special envoy Kofi Annan's six-point peace plan aimed at ending the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's rule.

The head of the UN Supervision Mission in Syria, General Babacar Gaye, had given a news conference at the Dama Rose on Monday.

The UN is due to meet on Thursday to discuss the future of the mission, whose mandate ends of August 19.

Baroness Amos, the UN emergency Co-ordinator, is currently in Damascus meeting Syrians displaced by the fighting. On the first day of the three day visit she met people at an emergency shelter set up in a school.

"Clearly the situation has got worse since I was here in March," she said.

"We will, through our partners the Syrian Arab Red Crescent who, as you know, have been doing and extremely good job trying to make sure the people who need help get help, we will continue to support them but also work to scale up our own efforts," Amos added.

Damascus has been hit by several bombings in recent months, including one that killed at least senior security officials at the national security headquarters in July.

The latest bomb attack came as an emergency summit of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) met in Mecca, Saudi Arabia to discuss suspending Syria.

The move by the 57-member body, which represents 1.5 million Muslims worldwide, is aimed at further isolating Mr Assad's embattled regime but its effect is seen as being largely symbolic.

Syria was suspended from the Arab League last year over its bloody clampdown on the uprising, which has now left up to 21,000 people dead, according to rights groups.

'Crimes Committed By All Sides' In Syria Conflict


UN investigators publish a report on allegations of crimes against humanity as rebels and the military clash in Damascus.


4:01pm UK, Wednesday 15 August 2012

• 
  
  A bomb has exploded outside a hotel where UN observers are staying in Damascus, Syria.
  
• 
  
  A firefighter at the scene of the blast.
  
• 
  
  Soldiers investigating the attack.
  
• 
  
  Scene of the Damascus hotel bomb.
  
• 
  
  Syrian state TV said the bomb near the Dama Rose hotel was planted on a fuel lorry. Click through for the latest images from Syria.
  
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  Dar Al Shifa Hospital, damaged in a Syrian Air force air strike, in the Sha'aar neighbourhood of Aleppo.
  
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  Damaged buildings in Juret al Shayah in Homs.
  
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  A Free Syrian Army fighter fires an AK-47 rifle in Aleppo.
  
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  FSA members in Homs.
  
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  Damaged tanks at the town of Atareb on the outskirts of Aleppo.
  
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  A general view of damaged buildings in Juret al Shayah in Homs.
  
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  A Syrian refugee woman carries her baby as they walk amidst dust at the Al Zaatri refugee camp in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, near the border with Syria.
  
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  An alleged Syrian army fighter jet is engulfed in flames in this still picture taken from amateur video.
  
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  Four armed rebels and a man described as a captured pilot are seen in this still image taken from amateur video out of Syria.
  
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  Free Syrian Army fighters sit behind a barricade on a street in Aleppo.
  
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  FSA members holding their weapons and opposition flags at Sermada near Idlib.
  
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  A Free Syrian Army fighter passes an AK-47 rifle to his fellow fighter in Aleppo.
  
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  Damaged tanks in the town of Atareb.
  
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  Residents look at damaged military vehicles near Idlib.
  
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  Syria was suspended from the Arab League last year over its bloody clampdown on the uprising, which has now left up to 21,000 people dead, according to rights groups.
  

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Gallery: Blasts Rock Syrian Capital City

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  [email=?subject=Shared from Sky News: 'Crimes Committed By All Sides' In Syria Conflict&body=Shared from Sky News: 'Crimes Committed By All Sides' In Syria Conflict http://news.sky.com/story/972681]Email[/email]
  

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Syrian military forces and rebel fighters have both committed crimes against humanity during the 17-month uprising against President Bashar al Assad's rule, UN investigators have concluded.

The panel appointed by the UN Human Rights Council said that anti-government groups had carried out murders, extrajudicial killings and torture but with less "gravity, frequency and scale" than regime loyalists.

It also blamed the government and its Shabiha militia for the deaths of more than 100 civilians, many of them children, in the village of Houla in May.

The findings of the investigation were released as the rebels clashed with Syrian troops in Damascus, just hours after a bomb exploded near a hotel used by UN observers, wounding at least three people.

The fighting broke out after the Free Syrian Army launched an attack on government checkpoints in the district of Mezze, according to opposition activists.

It was also reported that smoke could be seen coming from the Iranian embassy building, which is under construction in the area.

Sky's foreign affairs editor Tim Marshall, reporting from the Syrian capital, said he had heard more than 20 explosions in just 15 minutes.

"I am guessing these are mortar rounds. I can't say for sure but they sound like mortar rounds," he said.

"They are concentrated very much into one area behind the Tishreen stadium."
Damascus has seen several bombings in recent months
The earlier bombing near the Dama Rose hotel blew up a fuel lorry in the car park of a military compound, state TV reported. The hotel and a Labour Union building across the road were both damaged.

The rebel Free Syrian Army said it had targeted a meeting between army officers and members of the Shabiha, a pro-government militia.

None of the injured were believed to be members of the UN mission sent to Syria to monitor former special envoy Kofi Annan's six-point peace plan aimed at ending the uprising.

State TV quoted deputy foreign minister Faisal Mekdad as saying: "This was a criminal act aimed at distorting Syria's image."

The head of the UN Supervision Mission in Syria, General Babacar Gaye, had given a news conference at the Dama Rose on Monday.

The UN is due to meet on Thursday to discuss the future of the mission, whose mandate ends of August 19.

Baroness Amos, the UN emergency co-ordinator, is currently in Damascus meeting Syrians displaced by the fighting. On the first day of the three day visit, she visited an emergency shelter set up in a school.

"Clearly the situation has got worse since I was here in March," she said.

She added: "We will, through our partners the Syrian Arab Red Crescent who, as you know, have been doing an extremely good job trying to make sure the people who need help get help, we will continue to support them but also work to scale up our own efforts."

Damascus has been hit by several bombings in recent months including one that killed at least three senior officials at the national security headquarters in July.

The latest bomb attack came as an emergency summit of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) was held in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, to discuss suspending Syria.

The move by the 57-member body, which represents 1.5 million Muslims worldwide, is aimed at further isolating Mr Assad's embattled regime but its effect is seen as being largely symbolic.

Syria was suspended from the Arab League last year over its bloody clampdown on the uprising, which has now left up to 21,000 people dead, according to rights groups.

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2012/08/14/Russian-Official-Claims-Assad-Ready-to-Step-Down-in-Syria?utm_source=e_breitbart_com&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Breitbart+News+Roundup%2C+August+15%2C+2012&utm_campaign=20120815_m113288507_Breitbart+News+Roundup%2C+August+15%2C+2012&utm_term=More


According to reports coming out of Russia, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is prepared to step down. The reports indicate the turning point came when Assad's brother suffered significant injuries "in the blast that killed several key regime officials in Damascus last month."

Assad's brother, Maher Assad, was the commander of Syria's 4th Division and the Republican Guards that protect the capital. He lost both legs in the explosion in Damascus, and even now "is struggling to survive."

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdonav says that since the attack in Damascus, Assad's control of the country has only worsened, and that Syria is on the verge of true civil war. Bogdonav claims the only way to avoid bloodshed on a greater level is to let Assad step down and find a political, rather than a military, solution for conflict.

AnnaEsse wrote:http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2012/08/14/Russian-Official-Claims-Assad-Ready-to-Step-Down-in-Syria?utm_source=e_breitbart_com&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Breitbart+News+Roundup%2C+August+15%2C+2012&utm_campaign=20120815_m113288507_Breitbart+News+Roundup%2C+August+15%2C+2012&utm_term=More


According to reports coming out of Russia, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is prepared to step down. The reports indicate the turning point came when Assad's brother suffered significant injuries "in the blast that killed several key regime officials in Damascus last month."

Assad's brother, Maher Assad, was the commander of Syria's 4th Division and the Republican Guards that protect the capital. He lost both legs in the explosion in Damascus, and even now "is struggling to survive."

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdonav says that since the attack in Damascus, Assad's control of the country has only worsened, and that Syria is on the verge of true civil war. Bogdonav claims the only way to avoid bloodshed on a greater level is to let Assad step down and find a political, rather than a military, solution for conflict.

It is well known that a safe passage to Russia has been available for a while and rumour has it Assad has transferred

his money ro a Russian Bank.

UN: Up To 2.5m Syrians Need Humanitarian Aid


Baroness Amos warns of a growing humanitarian crisis in Syria and that a political solution is needed to stop the fighting.


9:27am UK, Thursday 16 August 2012



Video: 2.5m Need Humanitarian Aid In Syria

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  Nations' humanitarian chief Valerie Amos has told Sky News that as many as 2.5 million people need humanitarian help in Syria.
  

The Baroness added aid organisations in the country are working to capacity and a political solution and a cessation in the fighting is needed to end the crisis.

She said: "When I was here in March I spoke to authorities about the importance of the humanitarian situation. They have now accepted that, they have a response plan but we now have to revise that plan.

"We thought it was 1.2 million people that needed help then. We think that figure might now be has high as 2.5 million."

More money and support was required and those engaged in the fighting needed to be reminded that it is civilians who are bearing the brunt of the violence, she said.
A man cries in front of houses destroyed by the Syrian army in Azaz
"We need people, we need money. We made an appeal at the end of March but we only have 40% of the money. People are tired, they want to go back home. But the crucial thing to make a difference is a stop to the fighting.

"I can't make that happen. But I can encourage those engaged in the violence to remember that it is ordinary women and children who are suffering the brunt of this."

Sky's Foreign Affairs Editor Tim Marshall said the Syrian President Bashar al Assad's regime was concerned international aid would not be used effectively.

He said: "Baroness Amos is here on the diplomatic side of trying to get aid in, and on that she hasn't fully succeeded.

"What she came here to do was to persuade the government to open up the roads and let the huge UN aid convoys in, and all the big aid agencies of the world like Oxfam and Christian Aid.

"But the government has said, 'No, we're not going to do that because we think a lot of the aid will fall into the hands of the rebels.'"
A Free Syrian Army fighter fires an AK-47 rifle in Aleppo
The Baroness has been holding talks in Syria to raise awareness about the worsening humanitarian situation and to gain access to civilians caught up in the fighting.

She visited a school in the Zahera district of south Damascus where hundreds of civilians who have fled the fighting were living without proper food, bedding or running water.

The UN Security council was to meet later to end the observer mission to Syria following a day of violence across the country.

A bomb exploded in the Syrian capital on Wednesday near several government buildings and the UN's hotel, wounding three people.

Mr Assad's forces still have control of Damascus, but fierce fighting is continuing in the northern district of Aleppo where they have been trying to dislodge resistance from the rebel opposition.

Government air strikes in the nearby city of Azaz killed 30 people on Wednesday, according to activists.

Destruction of Syrian infrastructure leads to disease concerns



By the CNN Wire Staff
August 18, 2012 -- Updated 0736 GMT (1536 HKT)









A Free Syrian Army fighter takes aim during clashes in Aleppo on Friday, August 17. For days, the northern Syrian city has been at the center of some of the worst fighting in the 18-month-old conflict.
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A rebel fighter makes his way through a hole in a wall during fighting Friday in Aleppo, Syria's largest city.
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A rebel climbs some stairs in a building during clashes in central Aleppo's Salaheddine neighborhood.
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A rebel fighter runs for cover as a Syrian army tank shell hits a nearby building Friday in Aleppo. The opposition accuses Syrian forces of shelling flashpoint neighborhoods in Aleppo where rebels are making a stand.
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Free Syrian Army fighters dress a mannequin to look like a fighter to draw gunfire away from them Friday in Aleppo.
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Free Syrian Army fighters rest Friday in Aleppo during a lull in fighting.
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A fighter with the rebel Free Syrian Army secures a street Friday in the Damascus suburb of Saqba. Fighting raged unabated Friday across Syria, while diplomats struggled to find a political solution.
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Members of the Free Syrian Army try to secure a street Friday in Saqba.
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A rebel holds a rocket-propelled grenade Friday in the Damascus suburb.
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The Free Syrian Army takes charge of a street in Saqba.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter fires an anti-aircraft gun at a Syrian air force helicopter in Aleppo on Thursday, August 16.
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Free Syrian Army fighters carry the body of a fellow fighter during clashes Thursday in Aleppo. Government forces are pounding Syria's largest city in a siege that's become the focal point of the civil war.
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A grief-stricken woman clutches her dead baby while her husband's body is covered up following a regime airstrike on Azaz, a town near Aleppo, on Wednesday, August 15.
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Syrians search for people trapped under the rubble after the airstrike Wednesday in Azaz, near Aleppo.
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A man removes his belongings from his destroyed car at the airstrike site.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter fires an AK-47 rifle in Aleppo on Wednesday, August 15.
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Syrians carry the body of a woman after an airstrike in Azaaz.
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A Syrian man reacts after an airstrike in Azaaz.
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Syrians flee Azaaz following the airstrike.
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A Syrian youth holds the arm of someone trapped under rubble after an airstrike in the town of Azaaz, on the outskirts of Aleppo.
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Black smoke billows into the air after a bomb exploded at a military site car park near a hotel used by United Nations monitors in Damascus. The explosion Wedesday wounded three people, Syrian state television said.
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Firefighters work at the scene of a bomb explosion in central Damascus. The bomb was planted under a diesel tanker.
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A man carries the body of a boy after a Syrian Air Force strike on Azaz, some 29 miles north of Aleppo.
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A man sits in front of tombstone workshop in Aleppo.
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Jordanian security guards patrol the entrance of the Zaatari refugee camp, located outside the northern Mafraq, Jordan, which borders Syria. Refugees face the hardships of sweltering heat, dust, lack of electricity and at times sexual harassment in this UN-run desert tent camp.
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Jordanian security officers detain a Syrian man after he tried to escape from the Zaatari refugee camp in Mafraq.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter learns that his commander has been killed by a tank shell in Aleppo on Tuesday, August 14. Opposition activists say shelling in dissident strongholds has exacerbated the humanitarian crisis in the country.
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Free Syrian Army fighters look at the body of their commander killed by a tank shell Tuesday in Aleppo.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter fires his rifle in Aleppo on Tuesday.
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Syrian rebels fire toward a sniper in Aleppo on Monday, August 13, as fighting continues against Syrian government forces.
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A rebel fighter fires at government forces Monday in Aleppo's Salaheddin neighborhood.
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A Syrian rebel climbs a staircase in Aleppo's Salaheddin district as the opposition battles the regime.
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A man gives bags of bread to customers at a bakery run by the opposition Free Syrian Army in Aleppo, Syria's largest city.
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Rebels covered in dust and debris emerge from a building hit by an army tank shell Monday in Aleppo's Salaheddin area.
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A rebel fighter gestures toward others after emerging from a shelled building during fighting Monday with government forces.
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A Free Syrian Army sniper looks through the sight on his rifle from a house in Aleppo on Monday.
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Rebel fighters sit behind a barricade of rocks on an Aleppo street.
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Free Syrian Army fighters walk down a debris-covered street Monday in central Aleppo's Salaheddine neighborhood.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter fires an RPG as a Syrian army tank shell hits a building across a street during heavy fighting in central Aleppo on Saturday, August 11.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter sits on a window sill as he holds an AK-47 rifle in central Aleppo.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter aims his rifle during heavy fighting in the Salaheddine neighborhood.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter fires an RPG after a Syrian army tank shell hit a building during heavy fighting in the Salaheddine neighborhood.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter tries to fix his jammed rifle during heavy fighting in the Salaheddine neighborhood.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter runs for cover during heavy fighting in the Salaheddine neighborhood.
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Free Syrian Army fighters walk through a damaged building during heavy fighting in the Salaheddine neighborhood.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter aims an RPG as he waits for Syrian army tanks in the Salaheddine neighborhood.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter walks on an empty street in the Salaheddine neighborhood.
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Free Syrian Army members check a confiscated cache of weapons found on a truck that was searched at a checkpoint in Dana.
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A rebel fighter fires an anti-aircraft gun during a regime airstrike on Tel Rafat, a village north of Aleppo, on Thursday, August 9. The Syrian government and rebel groups have been battling for control of Aleppo, a key front in the conflict that has morphed into a civil war.
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A Syrian air force fighter plane fires during an airstrike Thursday in Tel Rafat, north of Aleppo. Forces loyal to the regime have been shelling Aleppo, Syria's largest city.
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A truck burns after apparently being hit by rockets during an airstrike on Tel Rafat.
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Men carry the body of a boy killed in an airstrike in the village of Tel Rafat.
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A boy's body is uncovered in the rubble of a house demolished during the recent clashes in Tel Rafat.
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A man steps on a carpeted image of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Anadan, northwest of Aleppo, on Wednesday, August 8. The fighting has taken a toll on al-Assad's regime, which has been hit by assassinations and political and military defections.
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Residents sift through rubble Wednesday searching for bodies under a collapsed house destroyed in an airstrike.
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Syrian refugees bathe Wednesday at Al Zaatri U.N. camp in the Mafraq, Jordan, near the border with Syria. The recent shelling has led thousands of residents to flee Syria.
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Syrian refugees cook a meal at Al Zaatari camp in Mafraq, Jordan.
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A Syrian rebel prepares his weapon as a group of Free Syrian Army fighters head toward the fighting with Syrian Army soldiers in the Salah ad-Din neighborhood of central Aleppo on Sunday, August 5.
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Syrians evacuate a civilian wounded in shelling in the northern city of Aleppo on Saturday, August 4. Syria's armed forces pounded Aleppo's rebel-held Salah ad-Din district with air and ground fire as violence also raged in the Shaar and Sukkari districts, according to reporters in the area and a rebel commander.
cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length]={"currentPicture":false,"x":0,"y":0,"pos":60,"title":"Showdown in Syria"}

A vehicle burns as Syrians walk through debris from clashes between Syrian armed forces and rebels in the northern city of Aleppo on Saturday, August 4.
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A boy plays on the gun of a destroyed Syrian army tank partially covered in the rubble of the destroyed Azaz mosques, north of the restive city of Aleppo, on Thursday, August 2.
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Smoke rises from Al-Safsaf in Homs on Friday, August 3.
cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList[cnnArticleGallery.currentImageList.length]={"currentPicture":false,"x":0,"y":0,"pos":63,"title":"Showdown in Syria"}

A boy plays with an AK-47 rifle owned by his father in Azaz, some 29 miles north of Aleppo on Friday, August 3.
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Syrians climb on an abandoned Syrian army tank north of Aleppo on Thursday, August 2.
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A man looks at a destroyed Syrian army compound in Azaz, 29 miles north of Aleppo on Friday, August 3.
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A Syrian refugee walks at the Al Zaatri refugee camp in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, near the border with Syria, on Friday, August 3.
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People and a member of the Free Syrian Army commute on Wednesday, August 1, past a building on the outskirts of Idlib that was hit by rocket fire Tuesday night by forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad. Unrest spread across other volatile regions of the country as al-Assad's forces shelled targets and launched raids in and around Damascus, Homs, Daraa and Deir Ezzor.
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A woman and child on Wednesday walk through rubble of a building destroyed by shelling from forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo.
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Demonstrators hold an opposition flag during a protest Wednesday against Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus.
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Syrian girls on Wednesday walk past a Syrian army tank captured two days earlier by rebel fighters at a checkpoint in the village of Anadan. The strategic checkpoint secures the rebel fighters free movement between the northern city of Aleppo and Turkey.
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Rebel Free Syrian Army fighters capture a policeman who they allege is a "Shabiha" or pro-regime militiaman, on Tuesday, July 31, as the rebels overrun a police station in Aleppo.
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Rebel fighters load an anti-aircraft machine gun on an armored vehicle in Atareb, east of Syria's second-largest city, Aleppo, on Tuesday, July 31.
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Syrian boys run near a building hit by bullets and fire in Atareb.
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A member of the Free Syrian Army fires at forces loyal to President Bashar Al-Assad in a district of Aleppo called Salah Edinne on Tuesday.
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A member of the Free Syrian Army carries an injured civilian to safety in Aleppo's district of Salah Edinne on Tuesday.
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Members of the Free Syrian Army learn that a tank belonging to forces loyal to President Bashar Al-Assad is heading to the area.
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A Syrian boy carries bags of bread as people wait outside a bakery near Syria's second-largest city, Aleppo.
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A photo released by Syrian Arab News Agency depicts damaged buildings in Homs on Monday, July 30.
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A Free Syrian Army fighter takes position Sunday, July 29, in Aleppo as people flee shelling. Intense clashes have been under way for more than a week between the regime and rebels in Aleppo, Syria's commercial and cultural center.
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Parts of Syria's largest city saw the fiercest clashes yet in the country's 16-month crisis on Saturday, July 28. About 200,000 people have fled fighting in Aleppo and surrounding areas in the past two days, a U.N. official says.
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Fighting leaves vehicles damaged Saturday in the southwestern city of Daraa.
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Syrians carry the body of a man allegedly killed in the bombardment of Sukari, southwest of Aleppo, by Syrian regime forces on July 27.
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Destruction appears widespread in Homs on Friday, July 27, in a handout photo from the Syrian opposition Shaam News Network.
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A Syrian opposition fighter takes aim during clashes with forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo on Wednesday, July 25.
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Family and friends mourn over the body of Usame Mircan, who they say was killed by a Syrian government sniper in Aleppo on Wednesday.
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Usame Mircan's mother grieves after he was killed during fighting in Aleppo.
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The bodies of men killed during clashes between Syrian rebel fighters and goverment forces lie on the Aleppo street on Thursday, July 26.
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Fighters from the Syrian opposition rest at a former primary school in Aleppo on Wednesday.
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Residents take cover as fighters from the Syrian opposition clash with forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo on Wednesday.
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Syrian rebels guard a checkpoint in Aleppo on Wednesday.
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A damaged portrait of President Bashar al-Assad sits among piles of debris at a checkpoint manned by Syrian rebels in Aleppo on Wednesday.
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Syrian rebels drive through Selehattin near Aleppo during clashes with government forces on Monday, July 23.
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A Syrian rebel runs through the streets of Selehattin during an attack on a municipal building. The rebel Free Syrian Army says it is attempting to "liberate" several districts of Aleppo.
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Syrian rebels work to find snipers during clashes Monday between the opposition and government forces in Selehattin.
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Syrian rebels make their way down a street Monday in Selehattin near Aleppo. If they gain control of Aleppo, it would mark a pivotal point in the Syrian crisis.
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Syrian rebels take cover behind sandbags during fighting Monday at the entrance to the city of Selehattin.
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On Sunday, July 22, a Syrian refugee looks out from a bus as he arrives at a refugee camp in Turkey opposite the Syrian commercial crossing point Bab al-Hawa.
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Syrian refugees flee from a refugee camp nicknamed "Container City" on the Turkish-Syrian border in Kilis province, southern Turkey, on Sunday.
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A mortar shell falls toward the Syrian village of Jbatha Al-khashab, about 45 kilometers (28 miles) south of Damascus. It's seen from the Israeli side of the border, in the Golan Heights.
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Smoke from artillery shelling rises above Jbatha Al-khashab.
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An armed Syrian rebel wearing the jersey of FC Barcelona rests with comrades near the northern city of Aleppo on Sunday. The rebel Free Syrian Army announced the start of the battle to "liberate" Aleppo, Syria's commercial hub and a traditional bastion of President Bashar al-Assad's regime.
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A Free Syrian Army soldier rips a portrait of President Bashar al-Assad at the Bab Al-Salam border crossing to Turkey on Sunday.
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Dozens of Turkish truck drivers on Saturday, July 21, accused Free Syrian Army rebels of having burned and looted their lorries as they captured Syria's Bab al-Hawa post, near Aleppo, from government troops.
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In this photo released by the Shaam News Network, a truck burns after shelling in the Erbeen suburb of Damascus on Saturday, July 21.
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Refugees fleeing the violence in Syria arrive by bus in Baghdad, Iraq, on Saturday.
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Turkish soldiers stand guard at the Cilvegozu border gate in Reyhanly that connects to Syria's Bab al-Hawa post. An estimated 120,000 people have fled Syria to Turkey, Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan.
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Burned-out trucks at the Bab al-Hawa Syrian border post with Turkey on Friday, July 20. Syrian rebels seized control of the post after a fierce battle with Syrian troops, an AFP photographer at the scene reported.
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Syrian soldiers celebrate in the al-Midan area in Damascus on Friday. Syrian regime forces routed rebel fighters from the Damascus neighbourhood of Midan, Syrian state television reported, saying troops had "cleaned" the district of "terrorists."
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Journalists are shown a dead body on a government tour of the al-Midan area in Damascus on Friday.
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Members of Syria security forces rest in the al-Midan area in Damascus on Friday.
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Syrian army soldiers hang their national flag in a partially destroyed neighborhood in the al-Midan area in Damascus.
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Smoke hangs in the air in a partially destroyed neighborhood in the al-Midan area in Damascus.
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Members of Syria security forces pose for photographers in the al-Midan area in Damascus after driving out the rebel fighters.
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Syrian residents take goods from a truck that rebels captured at the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey on Friday.
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A picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency on July 19 shows Syrian General Fahd al-Freij meeting with President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus after his swearing-in ceremony as defense minister.
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A man holds up a picture of President Bashar al-Assad at a former police station in Atareb after clashes between Syrian soldiers and Free Syrain Army near Aleppo on Thursday, July 19. Rebels seized control of border crossings with Iraq on Thursday, dealing a new blow to al-Assad, as China and Russia dismayed the West by blocking U.N. action against his regime.
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People walk along the street in Atareb amidst damage caused by clashed between Syrian soldiers and the Free Syrian Army.
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A Syrian man checks the former police station of Syrian regime after a clash at Atareb on Thursday.
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Smoke ascends from from alleged shelling of the Syrian village of Jebata al-Khashab as seen from the hill village of Buqaata in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights on Thursday.
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The death toll in Syria on July 12 reached 287, making it the bloodiest day in Syria since the uprising began. As it has done consistently, Syrian state television blamed "armed terrorist groups" for the killings.
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A Syrian woman sits with her grandson outside a damaged building after attacks in the Syrian village of Treimsa on July 13, 2012. More than 200 people were massacred in the town, according to activists.
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A Syrian demonstrator holds an opposition flag during a protest in Damascus on July 2, 2012. There have been increasing reports of violence in the Syrian capital.
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Syria's President Bashar al-Assad waves as he arrives for a speech to Syria's parliament in Damascus on June 3, 2012. The embattled president denied that government forces were behind the "outrageous" massacre in Houla.
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People gather at a mass burial on May 26, 2012 for victims reportedly killed during an artillery barrage from Syrian forces in Houla. The attack left at least 108 people dead, including nearly 50 children, according to the United Nations.
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Members of the Free Syrian Army return to Qusayr on May 12, 2012 after an attack on Syrian regime forces in the village of Nizareer, near the Lebanese border in Homs.
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A U.N. observer speaks with Syrian rebels and civilians in the village of Azzara on May 4, 2012, days before the country's parlianemtary polls were held against a backdrop of unrest.
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Thousands of Syrians wave their national flag and hold portraits of President Bashar al-Assad and Lebanon's Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, right, during a rally to show support for their leader on March 29, 2012 in Damascus.
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Syrian rebel fighters man a checkpoint leading into the town of Taftanaz in the rebel stronghold province of Idlib on March 20, 2012.
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A Free Syrian Army rebel mounts his steed in the Al-Shatouria village near the Turkish border in northwestern Syria on March 16, 2012, a year after the uprising began. The Free Syrian Army is an armed opposition group made up largely of military defectors.
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Syrian refugees walk across a field before crossing into Turkey on March 14, 2012. International mediator Kofi Annan called for an immediate halt to the killing of civilians in Syria as he arrived in Turkey for talks on the crisis.
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A day after the twin suicide bombings, Syrian mourners pray over the coffins of the 44 people killed during a mass funeral in Damascus.
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A Syrian man who was wounded in a suicide attack rests at a hospital in Damascus on December 23, 2011. Suicide bombers hit two security service bases in the Syrian capital, killing dozens of people.
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Arab foreign ministers attend an emergency meeting at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo on October 16, 2011, to discuss the crisis in Syria.
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U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks to the media in Washington on August 18, 2011. Clinton said U.S. sanctions on Syrian oil "strike at the heart of the Syrian regime."
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Syrian youths wave national flags while army troops drive out of Daraa on May 5, 2011. During a week-long military lockdown of the town, dozens of people were reportedly killed in what activists described as "indiscriminate" shelling on the city.
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Syrians in Damascus protest in the street on March 25, 2011, after clashes with government forces in Daraa left several dead.
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Supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad rally on April 1 in Istanbul, Turkey, as delegates from dozens of countries gather to push for ways to end the deadly violence in Syria. The United Nations estimates more than 10,000 people have been killed since the beginning of the crisis in March 2011. The conflict is now being labeled a civil war by the International in

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STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• The World Health Organization reports increased rates of diarrhea in the Damascus area
  
• It suspects the water supply is contaminated by the destruction of the sewage system
  
• An additional 3,500 Syrians flee to Turkey in the past few days, a U.N. spokesman says
  
• The total number of refugees in neighboring countries has topped 170,100, the U.N. says
  

(CNN) -- The incessant violence in Syria has not only spawned a humanitarian crisis; it is also prompting concerns about the spread of disease, officials said.

"We have heard through the Ministry of Health itself that an estimated 38 hospitals and 149 other clinics have been substantially damaged or destroyed, so this clearly worsens the access to health care," said Richard Brennan, director of emergency risk management for the World Health Organization.

"There are also concerns to the broader public health infrastructure, water supplies, sewerage systems and so on, and that's why we are redoubling our efforts in monitoring the rates of disease and this early identification of increased rates of diarrhea in Damascus, in rural Damascus," Brennan added. "Our early investigations suggest that this is because of contamination of the water supply due to destruction of the sewerage system."

With no end to the country's civil war in sight, thousands more Syrians have fled across the border this week, a spokesman for the U.N.'s refugee office said.

At least 3,500 people arrived in Turkey within the past few days, spokesman Adrian Edwards said Friday.

"With these latest arrivals, there are now almost 65,000 Syrians in the nine camps in Turkey, though not all are yet formally registered," Edwards said. "To put this in perspective, about 40% have arrived there during August."

The number of formally registered Syrian refugees who have fled to neighboring Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan now totals at least 170,116, the United Nations said.

Those still inside Syria witnessed fresh violence Saturday from both the ground and sky, opposition activists said.

Warplanes attacked the western city of Houla as regime tanks shelled parts of the Damascus area, the Local Coordination Committees of Syria said. At least six people were killed across the country early Saturday.

In the ongoing global effort to stop the bloodshed, an Algerian diplomat became the new U.N.-Arab League special envoy to Syria.

On Friday, a U.N. spokesman said Lakhdar Brahimi has been appointed to replace Kofi Annan, the previous envoy to Syria who resigned after months of fizzled attempts to broker peace in the war-torn country.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime has refused to acknowledge the civil war, insisting it is fighting armed gangs and foreign fighters bent on destabilizing the country.

"The Syrian military always keeps in mind that they need to safeguard and protect everyone," Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem told state-run TV this week. "But the armed terrorist gangs have no principles. They kill and destroy and no one holds them accountable."

CNN is unable to independently verify claims of violence as Syria has severely restricted the access of international journalists.

if(typeof CNN.expElements==='object'){CNN.expElements.init();}

CNN's Saad Abedine and Holly Yan contributed to this report.

The Syrian government has denied widespread reports that top regime official Vice President Faruq al Shara has defected and joined the opposition.

Vice foreign minister Faisal Makded told Sky News that Mr Shara was still working for the government and had not left the country.

Mr Shara, 73, is the most powerful Sunni Muslim figure in President Bashar al Assad's minority Alawite-led regime, which has been hit hard by a string of defections including former prime minister Riad Hijab.

Mr Makded also said rebel forces in Damascus and Aleppo would be "defeated very soon".

Meanwhile, the United Nations says it will not leave Syria as the number of refugees fleeing the violence surged to more than 170,000.

Lieutenant General Babacar Gaye, head of the UN supervision mission, said: "We will assist the move from violence to peace. The UN will stay, triggering dialogue between the parties."

He spoke out as the bloodshed continued in cities across the country.

Earlier, Syrian rebels clashed with government forces at one of the country's main crossings into Turkey.

An army convoy heading to the Bab al Hawa border was ambushed by opposition fighters. Footage appears to show rebels shooting at military tanks and helicopters.
Rebels attack army convoy near the Turkish border
In the nearby city of Aleppo, Syrian jets continued to strike residential areas, reportedly killing a woman and three children.

Jets also bombed the town of Aazaz on Friday, just days after an air strike that flattened homes and killed at least 40 people, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Fighting has also been reported in the central city of Homs and the southern city of Herak. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 129 people were killed in violence on Friday alone.

The intensified fighting has sent thousands more Syrians fleeing into neighbouring countries as the divided international community appears powerless to act.

More than 170,000 Syrians have sought sanctuary in Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan and Iraq - at least 12,000 of them in the last three days - leading to a growing humanitarian crisis, the UN said.

French foreign minister Laurent Fabius called for President Bashar al Assad's regime to be "smashed fast" as he visited the largest of the refugee camps in Turkey.
Footage appears to show rebels shooting at tanks near Bab al Hawa
"After hearing the refugees and their account of the massacres of the regime, Mr Bashar al Assad doesn't deserve to be on this earth," he said.

Russia has rejected a proposal to set up no-fly zones to help fleeing civilians after the US said it was ready to consider the move.

"You have to solve citizen security issues using methods put in practice by international humanitarian law," Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov told Sky News Arabia.

"But if you try to create no-fly zones and safety zones for military purposes by citing an international crisis - this is unacceptable."

On Friday, veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi, 78, took over as international envoy from Kofi Annan, who quit after the failure of his peace plan.

Syria: Obama's Warning Over Chemical Weapons


The Assad regime gets its starkest warning yet of US intervention, as a picture emerges of a Japanese reporter killed in Aleppo.


12:01pm UK, Tuesday 21 August 2012



Video: Obama's Strongest Warning To Syria
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Gallery: Fighting Rages Across Syria
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  A Syrian boy cries in front of damaged building in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo.
  
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  Members of the Free Syrian Army gather during clashes with regime forces in the Salaheddine neighbourhood of central Aleppo.
  
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  A man cries near the graves of his two children, killed during a recent airstrike in Azaz.
  
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  Members of the Free Syrian Army in a damaged street in the Salaheddine neighbourhood of central Aleppo.
  
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  A rebel takes up position against snipers in the Castal Harami area of the city of Aleppo.
  
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  A man stands near his destroyed house after a recent airstrike in Azaz.
  
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Barack Obama has warned Syria's Assad regime of "enormous consequences" if it resorts to chemical weapons in its 17-month conflict with opposition forces.

The US president said that while he had not ordered intervention "at this point", Washington was "monitoring the situation very carefully".

Speaking as it emerged that a Japanese journalist had been killed in heavy fighting in Syria's biggest city, Aleppo, Mr Obama said the use of chemical weapons would cross a "red line".
Mika Yamamoto (Photo: Kyodo News)
"There would be enormous consequences if we start seeing movement on the chemical weapons front or the use of chemical weapons," he said at a White House briefing.

"That would change my calculations significantly."

Syria said in July that it could use chemical weapons if faced with any "external aggression".

More than 130 people were killed in a day of fierce fighting on Monday, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, including two children in shelling in Deraa.

In Aleppo, nine civilians were reported killed, including two women and two children.

The female Japanese journalist, named as 45-year-old Mika Yamamoto, was killed after being caught in gunfire.

Fellow Japan Press reporter Kazutaka Sato, who was travelling with Ms Yamamoto, said it appeared she was shot by government forces.
A Free Syrian Army fighter in Aleppo on August 20
Three other journalists - a Lebanese woman, an Arab male working for a US media outlet and a Turkish national - have been reported missing while covering the Syria uprising.

A total of 23,000 people have now been killed since March last year, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, while the UN puts the death toll at around 17,000.

22 August 2012 Last updated at 07:16








Deadly fighting over Syria grips north Lebanon


Clashes have continued for two days
Continue reading the main story

Syria conflict

• Will Kurds benefit from the crisis?
  
• Map of territory 'controlled'
  
• Damascene tells of fears
  
• Fear and hunger in Aleppo
  

Seven people have been killed and more than 70 wounded after fighting in northern Lebanon between two Muslim communities divided over Syria.

Street battles between Sunnis and Alawites in the city of Tripoli continued for a second night running.

Old rivalry between the two groups has been fuelled by conflicting loyalties in the conflict across the border.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, an Alawite, is battling largely Sunni opposition fighters.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, himself a Sunni, appealed to both sides to end the "absurd battle" rocking Tripoli, a city of nearly 200,000 people and the country's second-largest.

"We have repeatedly warned against being drawn into this blaze that has spread around Lebanon," he said, speaking of the violence in Syria.

He urged Tripoli residents "not to allow anyone to transform you into ammunition for someone else's war".
Dangerous divisions
Gunmen in the Sunni district of Bab al-Tabbana and Alawites in Jabal Muhsin exchanged gun and grenade fire overnight, residents were quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.

Two men killed were identified as residents of Jabal Muhsin, which overlooks a predominantly Sunni area where five people died, medical sources told the agency.

Tripoli is one of Lebanon's most volatile sectarian faultlines, with a small Alawite community living in the midst of a Sunni majority, the BBC's Barbara Plett reports from the capital, Beirut.

Violence flared several times recently but locals say the last two days of clashes have been particularly intense, our correspondent says.

One witness said heavier weapons were being used, and over a larger area than normal.

Government policy has been to try to disassociate the country from the Syrian crisis, amid concern that it might re-ignite the divisions that fuelled Lebanon's own 15-year civil war, our correspondent adds.

But the more sectarian the violence becomes in Syria, the harder it is to prevent it from seeping across the border, she says.

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var ap_headline = "Syrian forces kill at least 31 in Damascus raids ";

Aug 22, 11:31 AM EDT Syrian forces kill at least 31 in Damascus raids By HAMZA HENDAWI Associated Press

World Video googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('rectangle_body'); }); AP_Tacoda_AMS_DDC_addPair("SECTION", "INTERNATIONAL; MIDDLE EAST") AP_Tacoda_AMS_DDC("http://te.ap.org/tte/blank.gif", "1.0") Documents Indictment of Monzer al-Kassar Latest Syria News Syrian forces kill at least 31 in Damascus raids Assad's regime steps up use of air power Clashes over Syria kill 2 in Lebanon Jordan protests Syrian shelling that wounded girl Jordan police say probing Syria refugee fire death var mytd = document.getElementById('mytd'); var mydiv = document.getElementById('spnrefmoneymarkets'); if (mytd != null) {mytd.innerHTML = spnrefmoneymarkets.innerHTML; mydiv.innerHTML = ''}; Buy AP Photo Reprints // var urlArray=document.URL.split("?"); // document.write(" "); BEIRUT (AP) -- Syrian regime forces shelled two Damascus districts Wednesday before troops backed by tanks swept through to carry out house-to-house raids in search of opposition fighters, killing at least 31 suspected rebels, activists said. The violence is part of a dramatic surge in fighting over the past month in Damascus, one of many fronts President Bashar Assad's regime is struggling to contain as the 17-month-old rebellion against his rule gains strength. Government forces are also engaged in a major battle for control of the northern city of Aleppo as well as smaller scale operations in the country's south, east and center. Also Wednesday, a prominent opposition figure rejected as "more lies" comments by a senior Syrian official that Damascus would be willing to discuss Assad's resignation but only after the opposition agreed to join in negotiating a peaceful settlement. "As for his resignation, making his resignation a condition for dialogue effectively makes holding such a dialogue impossible," said the official, Deputy Foreign Minister Qadri Jamil. "During the negotiating process any issues can be discussed, and we are ready to discuss even this issue." Reached in Turkey, Adib Shishakly of the Syrian National Council, a key umbrella opposition group, said: "It's the first time that we hear such talk, but it's difficult to believe. We have grown accustomed to the regime's lies." Around dawn Wednesday, regime forces in Damascus rained mortars down on the upscale Kafar Soussa neighborhood and the adjacent Nahr Eishah area of the Syrian capital, activists said. Government troops appeared to be shelling the districts from Qasioun mountain overlooking the capital, a Damascus resident said on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. The attacks may have been designed to kill or capture rebel mortar teams who have used the two neighborhoods in recent days to target the city's strategically located Mazzeh military airport, activists said. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 20 people were killed in Kafar Soussa on Wednesday and that fierce battles were raging in an area just outside the neighborhood between the rebels and government troops. An activist in Kafar Soussa reached on Skype corroborated the observatory's report. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he feared reprisals. Earlier, an activist who only wanted to be identified by the name Bassam for fear of retribution, said 11 people were killed in Kafar Soussa and that as many as 22 tanks stormed the district with about 20 soldiers on foot behind each one. He spoke via Skype from central Damascus. Bassam and the observatory also reported heavy government shelling of Nahr Eishah early Wednesday. They said regime forces then conducted house-to-house raids in search of rebels. Bassam said as many as 12 people were killed in Nahr Eishah, while the observatory had no word on casualties. It was not clear whether those killed in the two areas died in the shelling or later government raids. Activists, including the one reached by Skype in Kafar Soussa, spoke of execution-style killings in both areas. The activists' reports could not be independently verified. Syria's ongoing civil war has its roots in a mostly peaceful uprising against Assad's regime that began in March last year. The uprising grew increasingly violent as the government launched a brutal crackdown on protesters, prompting many to take up arms to forcefully overthrow Assad's regime. The conflict has to date defied all international efforts to end it. © 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.