26 Syrians Killed in Damascus Suicide Bomb, Opposition Groups Condemn it, January 7, 2012

26 Syrians Killed in Damascus Suicide Bomb,

Opposition Groups Condemn it

January 7, 2012

Suicide bomb kills 26 in Syria: interior minister

By ERIKA SOLOMON | REUTERS

Published: Jan 7, 2012 16:09 Updated: Jan 7, 2012 16:13

BEIRUT:

A suicide bomber killed 26 people and wounded 63 in Damascus, Syria’s interior minister said, vowing an “iron fist” response to Friday’s carnage in the heart of the capital after similar attacks two weeks ago.

Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al-Thani, said Syria was not implementing a deal with the Arab League aimed at halting violence in the country and that League monitors could not stay there to “waste time.”

An Arab League committee is due to meet on Sunday to discuss an initial report by Arab observers who are checking Syria’s compliance with the plan to end President Bashar Assad’s crackdown on nearly 10 months of unrest.

Sheikh Hamad said the Syrian army, required to pull out of Syrian cities according to the deal, had not withdrawn and that there had been no end to killing during the 10 days spent in Syria by the Arab monitors.

“With great regret, the news is not good,” Sheikh Hamad told Al Jazeera television.

The Arab League meeting may decide whether to continue the mission or to refer Syria to the United Nations Security Council, perhaps paving the way for some form of international action, a scenario that many Arab countries are keen to avoid.

Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby said he was sending a message with Khaled Meshaal, the Damascus-based leader of the Palestinian group Hamas, asking the Syrian government to work “with integrity” to halt the violence.

Interior Minister Ibrahim Al-Shaar, quoted by state television, said 26 people had been killed in the blast in the Maidan district of Damascus, including 15 who could not be identified because their bodies had been shredded in the blast.

“We will strike back with an iron fist at anyone tempted to tamper with the security of the country or its citizens,” said Shaar. He said 63 people had been wounded.

Some in the opposition said the government itself had staged the attack to try to show that it was fighting blind violence rather than a pro-democracy movement.

State television showed body parts, bloodstains and broken glass from the explosion. Several riot police shields were shown near a wrecked bus that was among several damaged vehicles.

Grisly footage

On Dec. 23 at least 44 people were killed by what Syrian authorities said were two suicide bombings that targeted security buildings in the Syrian capital, one day before the head of the Arab League observer mission arrived.

Syrian television footage of Friday’s blast showed yellow caution tape stretched around the wrecked bus and cars with smashed windows in a street. People collected body parts on blue plastic sheets amid pools of blood and scattered shoes.

Arab monitors in white baseball caps and orange vests inspected the area, taking notes and filming. A local police station was visible, apparently untouched by the explosion.

The TV showed crowds of angry locals gathered at the scene, chanting “God, Syria and Bashar only” and “God protect the army” and “With blood and soul we sacrifice for you Bashar.”

The monitors confirmed they had visited the scene. “We are only here to observe and document,” one of them told Reuters by telephone.

Syria bars most independent journalists from the country, making first-hand reporting impossible.

However, a BBC Arabic service reporter was able to accompany three Arab monitors on a five-hour visit to the town of Irbine, on the outskirts of Damascus, the BBC reported.

It was the first time foreign media were known to have been able to cover the activities of the monitors directly, although media access was a condition stipulated by the Arab League.

The BBC said it had been able to film, unhindered by the security forces, an anti-Assad protest in Irbine.

Protesters and residents told the observers, all Algerian diplomats, of harsh treatment at the hands of the security forces. The observers then witnessed a demonstration in which the crowd demanded Assad’s execution, the BBC said.

The Arab League’s special committee on Syria is due to meet in Cairo on Sunday to debate the initial findings of the observer mission, which has been criticized by Syrian activists who question its ability to assess violence on the ground.

Arab states are wary of instability in Syria, which the Arab League has suspended for failing to honor its first peace plan. Syria has been a major regional player, allied with Iran and the Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah group.

Hezbollah, a political and militant group that fought a war with Israel in 2006, blamed the United States for the blast.

“This is a second step in the plan by evil American forces and those under its control in our region to punish Syria for its firm support of resistance forces against the Zionist enemy (Israel) and the West,” it said on its website.

US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said that, as with previous attacks, Syria had blamed “just about everybody” — the opposition, Al-Qaeda and the United States — while the opposition, including the Free Syrian Army (FSA), had denied being behind the attacks and accused the authorities.

“At the present time we can’t say one way or the other how this happened but what we can say is that, obviously, we condemn the attack,” she said.

The United Nations says more than 5,000 people have been killed in the popular uprising against Assad. The government says “terrorists” have killed 2,000 members of the security forces during the revolt.

Fate of Arab mission

The monitors began work on the streets on Dec. 26 to try to verify whether the government was keeping its promise to pull troops and tanks out of cities and free thousands of detainees.

The FSA, an armed opposition force composed mainly of army deserters, condemned the attack and blamed the authorities.

“This is planned and systematic state terrorism by the security forces of President Bashar Assad,” FSA spokesman Major Maher Al-Naimi said.

An opposition activist, who asked not to be named, said militants were taking hold in Syria and may have been behind the blast. “I think we will be seeing more of these attacks in the coming days, I am sorry to say,” he said.

One Damascus resident, who gave her name only as Dima, said the city had been tense even before the blast. “Some friends who work in the security forces were warning my family since yesterday to stay at home,” she said. “The streets were empty.”

The violence in Syria has raged unabated since the Arab monitors arrived, with scores of people reported killed.

Security forces killed four protesters in Hama on Friday when they shot at people shouting anti-Assad slogans after weekly prayers, activists said.

Pro-Assad forces also wounded at least three protesters when they fired at a crowd at a Damascus mosque in a district where a security headquarters was located, a witness said.

The witness said pro-Assad militiamen and secret police agents fired water cannon and then assault rifles after the protesters in the Kfar Souseh district refused to disperse.

“I saw three people on the ground and I do not know if they are dead or alive,” said the witness, who lives nearby.

Arab government sources said on Thursday the League monitors would pursue their mission in Syria, despite criticism from Qatar’s prime minister that they had made mistakes.

Syrian activists say the Arab monitors have had inadequate access to trouble spots, a charge denied by Damascus.

Syrian Opposition Condemns Suicide Bombing in Damascus

January 6, 2012

DAMASCUS, January 6, 2012 (Xinhua) --

Syrian opposition figures denounced the explosion that rattled the heart of the Syrian capital of Damascus Friday, calling for embarking on a national dialogue to help bring the months-long crisis in the Middle East country to a close.

A suicide bombing ripped through al-Midan neighborhood in Damascus Friday, killing at least 25 people and leaving dozens of others wounded.

"The blast that has occurred today is suspicious and it's a result of the ongoing violence practiced by the authorities, who haven't abided by the Arab League peace plan," said Hasan Abdul- Azim, head of the opposition National Coordination Body.

"We can't accuse any party without solid evidence," he said, adding that "we condemn any criminal act regardless of who stands behind it and we stress that the Syrian revolution should remain peaceful because it's the only guarantee for it to triumph."

George Gabbour, a political analyst and former parliamentarian, told Xinhua that "I don't have any reason to question the official statement by the government on today's blast."

"Some opposition parties accused the Syrian leadership of being behind the blasts in Damascus, but most people don't believe so," Jabbour said, adding that "the opposition should present an evidence to substantiate its claims otherwise its accusations are just talks."

Right after the bombing, head of the so-called Syrian Free Army, a Turkish-based anti-government militia group allegedly comprised of army defectors, condemned the bombing and blamed the regime of President Bashar Assad for the blast.

In a phone interview with the Qatari al-Jazeera TV, Riad Asaad, a breakaway air force Col, said that he has about 35,000 defectors across Syria.

He confessed that his groups had carried out attacks over that past days against the Syrian army, and pledged that "we will surprise the Assad-regime with more qualitative operations."

The bombings represent an escalation of violence in Syria at a time when the Arab League observers are touring the country to monitor the nearly 10-month-old unrest on ground.

"I believe that the climate is suitable now for all Syrians to embark on a national inclusive dialogue with the presence of Arab observers," Jabbar said, adding that "the people should decide the style of rule that they want."

The head of the Arab League observers' mission in Syria immediately visited the site of the blast Friday, according to witnesses and official sources.

Arab League observers started on Dec. 27 a monthlong mission to verify Syria's commitment to an Arab plan to end the nearly 10- month-old unrest, which the government blamed on foreign conspiracy and armed groups.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Interior Ministry said Friday in a statement that the explosion was carried out by "armed terrorist groups that target the Syrian people's security and lives."

A suicide bomber blew himself up at a traffic light, killing at least 25 people and wounding 63 civilians and policemen, it said, adding that the explosion caused severe damage to parked cars and nearby buildings.

It said forensic experts gathered parts of the torn bodies and the explosive material "to identify the terrorists."

The initial investigations revealed that the explosives weigh more than 10 kilograms, said the statement, adding that specialized authorities have started investigations to disclose the motives of the "terrorist acts." The ministry vowed to beat with an "iron fist" whoever tries to mess with the country's security, urging residents to cooperate with Syrian authorities by reporting any "suspicious" case and submit information concerning the terrorists' activities and moves.

Also, the National Leadership of al-Baath Arab Socialist Party said that the timing of the terrorist attack reflects the criminal mentality of perpetrators and their antagonism towards moral heritage and national values.

In a statement issued on Friday, the leadership said the attack is "part of the conspiracy against Syria."

It said that the continuation of the terrorist acts targeting innocent civilians makes it imperative for the human, Arab and international organizations to condemn these acts and the ones behind them.

Last month, two suicide car bombers blew up themselves in front of two security headquarters in Damascus, killing at least 40 people and injuring 166 others.

The Syrian government said a total of 2,000 army and security personnel were killed during the months-long unrest, while the United Nations put the death toll in the country at more than 5, 000.

Editor: Mu Xuequan

Thousands hold prayers for Damascus bombing victims

France 24, 07/01/2012

By News Wires (text)

AP -

Thousands of regime backers massed at a mosque in the Syrian capital Saturday for funeral prayers for policemen killed in a Damascus bombing, as the government vowed to respond with an “iron fist” to security threats.

Coffins bearing 11 policemen, covered with Syrian flags, were brought into the Al-Hassan mosque for the prayers, a day after the explosion ripped through a Damascus intersection, killing 26 people and wounding 63. Officials said the attack was a suicide bombing, the second in two weeks to hit the normally quiet Syrian capital.

The regime of President Bashar Assad has touted the attacks as proof that it is being targeted by “terrorists.” But the country’s opposition demanded an independent investigation, accusing forces loyal to the Syrian regime of being behind the bombing to tarnish a 10-month-old uprising against Assad. The bombings have coincided with a mission by Arab League observers investigating Syria’s crackdown on the protest.

In the hours after the bombing, Syrian troops opened fire on demonstrators holding anti-Assad sit-ins in two parts of the country, killing one and wounding at least 20, activists said.

Friday’s blast took place in Damascus’ Midan neighborhood, one of the few parts of the heavily controlled capital that have seen protests against the regime. The Al-Hassan mosque, where Saturday’s prayers took place, has been a launching point for protests to start their marches following weekly prayers.

But on Saturday, it was swamped by Assad supporters.

Thousands of mourners outside the mosque chanted, “Freedom became terrorism. We are not scared of America, the mother of terrorism.” Others chanted, “the people want state of emergency,” referring to the decades-old emergency laws that Assad lifted in April as part of reforms he promised.

A group of women wore black shirts emblazoned with Assad’s picture, labeled “the Shield of Syria.”

Information Minister Adnan Mahmoud told reporters outside the mosque that explosion “is part of the scheme based on terrorism and killing that has been targeting Syria since nine months.”

Dahida Abdul-Rahman, 50-year-old housewife at the prayers, said the Arab observers should be thrown out of the country. “Since they came, terrorist attacks started,” she said.

Two weeks ago, twin suicide bombings hit two intelligence agencies in the capital, killing 44 people.

Friday’s blast hit a police bus and damaged a nearby police station, though it was impossible to determine what the exact target was. Afterward, the Interior Ministry, which is in charge of police and security forces, vowed to use an “iron fist” against threats.

The violence marks a dramatic escalation of bloodshed in Syria as Arab League observers tour the country to investigate Assad’s bloody crackdown on dissent. The monitoring mission will issue its first findings Sunday at a meeting in Cairo and its chief Lt. Gen. Mohamed Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi is scheduled to leave Syria on Saturday on his way to Egypt to give his report.

The Local Coordination Committees group said the troops fired late Friday upon scores of protesters who have been camped out in the central square of the northern town of Saraqeb for eight days. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported at least 20 were wounded.

Both groups also reported attacks by troops on Saturday on another sit-in in the restive central city of Homs, during which at least one person was killed.

A Homs-based activist said troops attacked the protesters in a public garden killing at least one. He added that army defectors fought back and pushed troops away.

“We live in a state of fear and our extreme fear comes from snipers,” said Majd Amer who lives near where the sit-in is held. He said thousands of people have been participating in the sit-in since Thursday.

While many of the anti-government protests sweeping the country remain peaceful, the uprising as a whole has become more violent in recent months as frustrated demonstrators take up arms to protect themselves from the steady military assault. An increasing number of army defectors also have launched attacks, killing soldiers and security forces.

The unrest has posed the most serious challenge to the Assad family’s 40-year dynasty. The regime’s crackdown has led to broad worldwide condemnation and sanctions, eviscerated the economy and left Assad an international pariah just as he was trying to open up his country and modernize the economy.

The government has long contended that the turmoil in Syria is not an uprising but the work of terrorists and foreign-backed armed gangs.

SYRIA Government threatens 'iron fist' against security threats

SYRIA Arab League admits 'mistakes' on Syria mission

SYRIA Blame game follows twin attacks in Syrian capital

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