Posts Tagged ‘ revolution ’

"Syrian authorities pursuing a crackdown against President Bashar Assad's critics banned three prominent opposition figures from leaving the country Sunday, and security forces killed two people and arrested several others in northern Syria, activists said. Michel Kilo, Loay Hussein and Fayez Sara were on their way to neighboring Lebanon to take part in a televised panel discussion when they were told by Syrian immigration authorities at the border that they were prohibited from leaving out of concern for their safety in Lebanon." (08/29/11)

"Syrian troops detained scores of people in Damascus and the coastal city of Latakia in overnight raids as President Bashar Assad’s regime tried to forcefully end a five-month uprising, activists said Wednesday. Assad dramatically escalated his crackdown on the five-month-old uprising since the start of the holy month of Ramadan in August, killing hundreds and detaining thousands." (08/17/11)

"More than 5,000 Palestinian refugees have fled a camp in the besieged Syrian city of Latakia after President Bashar Assad's forces shelled the city during a broad military assault to root out dissent, the U.N. said Monday. UNRWA, the U.N. agency that aids Palestinian refugees, said the Palestinians fled after Latakia came under fire from gunboats cruising off the coast and ground troops attacking the city over the weekend." (08/15/11)

"Tens of thousands of Syrian protesters shouted for President Bashar Assad's death Friday in a dramatic escalation of their rage and frustration, defying bullets and rooftop snipers after more than a week of intensified military assaults on rebellious cities, activists and witnesses said. Security forces killed at least 14 protesters, according to human rights groups." (08/13/11)

"Syria's tanks withdrew Wednesday from the center of the western city of Hama and were positioned on the city's periphery, more than a week after security forces besieged the center of anti-government sentiment, an activist said. Syrian army units left central Hama 'after restoring the security and stability to the city that have been through tough times due to the acts of killings, terrorizing and sabotage that were done by the armed terrorists groups,' the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said Wednesday." (08/10/11)

"Syrian President Bashar Assad replaced his defense minister Monday with the army chief of staff in the midst of a brutal military crackdown on a 5-month-old uprising, the state-run news agency said. Gen. Ali Habib, the country's defense minister since 2009, was removed from his post because of health problems, the SANA report said, but some analysts said the general was unhappy with the crackdown." (08/09/11)

"Syrian troops fired on mourners at a funeral and raided an eastern city Sunday, killing at least 59 people in an intensifying government crackdown on protesters. Outrage was intensifying as well: Syria's Arab neighbors forcefully joined the international chorus of condemnation against President Bashar Assad's regime for the first time." (08/07/11)

"The flashpoint Syrian city of Hama endured a fifth day under military siege Thursday, with a resident saying people were being 'slaughtered like sheep' in the streets and families were burying their dead in home gardens or roadsides rather than risk a trip to a cemetery. Food supplies grew short and residents shared bread, while phones, electricity and Internet were cut off or severely hampered." (08/04/11)

"The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday issued a statement condemning the Syrian government's crackdown on protesters and calling for an immediate end to violence by all parties. 'The Security Council condemns the widespread violations of human rights and the use of force against civilians by the Syrian authorities,' the eight-paragraph statement says." (08/03/11)

"At least 150 people were killed in Syria yesterday, al Jazeera reported, as soldiers sought to reassert control over a restive nation ... The army took action the day before the start of Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting and prayer. Tanks shelled Hama, Syria’s fourth-largest city, where at least 113 people were killed, the Qatari-based television network said, citing the National Organization for Human Rights in Syria." (07/31/11)

"Syrian troops flown in on helicopters descended on an eastern town near the Iraqi border Sunday where scores of soldiers defected to join the four-month-old uprising against President Bashar Assad, witnesses and activists said. Assad has unleashed military and security forces on restive towns across the country to crush the unrest, but the uprising has been building steadily. Friday saw the largest protests yet with hundreds of thousands turning out nationwide to challenge the president's rule. About 30 people were killed on Friday and Saturday authorities rounded up more than 500." (07/17/11)

"Hundreds of Syrian government supporters attacked the U.S. Embassy in Damascus Monday, smashing windows and spray-painting walls with obscenities and graffiti that called the American ambassador a 'dog.' Guards at the French Embassy fired in the air to ward off another group of protesters." (07/11/11)