Another Seven People Fall Victim to Syrian Violence
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October 7, 2011 TheFreshOutlook  |
Seven people have been shot dead in Syria after security forces opened fire in an attempt to disperse anti-presidential demonstrators.
Following the double veto of the UN’s Syrian resolution on Tuesday, a further seven people have allegedly been killed by Syrian forces.
Head of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdel-Rahman, has reported that three protestors were killed in Damascus, whilst “four people were killed in the neighbourhood of Sabaa” in the central city of Homs and another 25 were wounded after Syrian forces opened fire in an attempt to disperse demonstrations.
Two elderly gentlemen were reportedly amongst the dead in Homs as they were shot after leaving a mosque following Friday prayers, whilst Abdel-Rahmen added that the three killed in Damascus were taken out by “snipers”.
The demonstrations, which began earlier today, reportedly featured chants such as “Syria, Assad is a germ here” and “We do not love you (Assad), leave you and your party” after the protesters gathered in an attempt to urge the international community to help protect civilians from President Bashar al-Assad’s military regime, which has reportedly claimed more than 2,900 lives.
Al Jazeera television channel was told by one of the activists that Syrian protesters were also burning Russian and Chinese flags after the countries vetoed a UN Security Council resolution for the country.
It comes just hours after reports that Syrian military troops crossed over into Lebanon on Thursday, shooting dead a Syrian man who was living close to the border.
It is unclear why the man, who has been named as Ali al-Khatib, was killed in an attack which also left several houses damaged.
Lebanese officials have reportedly launched an investigation into the incident, whilst the country’s Prime Minister, Najib Miqati, commented: “I am not being silent about this; we are dealing with the issue normally.”
He added: “I don’t want to blow these incidents out of proportion and I don’t want to belittle them either.”
The violence from the past few days has fuelled the cynicism of opposition groups regarding President Assad’s promises of reforms, including ending the state of emergency, promising a parliamentary election, as well as giving citizenship to tens of thousands of Syrian Kurds.
By Laura Beard
[Image courtesy of shamsnn]
