25 April 2011 Last updated at 07:26 GMT
Syrian army 'attacks protest city of Deraa' Photo from an amateur video of protests in Deraa, 22 April 2011 Deraa has been at the epicentre of recent protests in Syria Syria's army has launched an attack on the southern city of Deraa, with tanks being used to back troops, according to activists and unverified video footage. One activist was quoted as saying that security forces were "firing in all directions", and there were unconfirmed reports of casualties. Deraa is where Syrian anti-government protests began five weeks ago. News of the assault follows reports of crackdowns and arrests in other parts of the country. A human rights campaigner told Reuters news agency that security forces had also stormed the Damascus suburb of Douma on Monday, opening fire on civilians and arresting scores of people. Security forces are said to be rounding up suspected protest organisers despite the lifting of the state of emergency last week. Protesters began calling for political reforms last month, but many are now demanding that President Bashar al-Assad step down. At least 350 people are reported to have been killed. 'Electricity cut' Activist Abdullah al-Harriri told AFP news agency that hundreds of security personnel had entered Deraa on Monday, supported by tanks and other armoured vehicles. Continue reading the main story Analysis image of Owen Bennett Jones Owen Bennett Jones BBC News, Beirut Opposition activists in recent days have been describing Deraa as liberated territory, and two members of parliament and a local religious official resigned on Saturday to protest against the killing of demonstrators there. By sending in troops the government has shown its determined to win back control of the city. Elsewhere in Syria, armed security personnel in uniform and in plain clothes have been patrolling through the street of cities and towns. Last week in an attempt to appease the protesters the government lifted the state of emergency. That failed to stop the protests and ever since the government has been using force to suppress the demands for greater freedom. "The men are firing in all directions and advancing behind the armour which is protecting them," he said. "Electricity is cut off and telephone communications are virtually impossible." One resident told Arabic broadcaster al-Jazeera that five people had been killed. Foreign journalists have been prevented from entering the country, making information hard to verify. But the BBC's Owen Bennett-Jones in neighbouring Lebanon says the use of tanks has not been reported elsewhere in Syria, and would mark a scaling up in the government's response to protests. It appears from the latest reports that the government is absolutely determined to use force to suppress the protest movement, he says. Deaths in Jabla In recent days opposition activists have been describing Deraa as liberated territory, and two members of parliament and a local religious official resigned on Saturday to protest against the killing of demonstrators there. BBC map Deraa has had the highest death toll of any town in Syria. Earlier, at least four people were reported to have been killed in Jabla, a north-western town of 80,000, after security forces opened fire there late on Sunday. At least 95 people were reported killed across Syria on Friday and a further 12 on Saturday, as mourners came under fire. The authorities have reacted erratically to demonstrations - sometimes promising to allow more democracy and freedoms, and other times opening fire on demonstrators. Campaign group Human Rights Watch called for a UN inquiry and international sanctions against Syria following Friday's killings. ------------------------------------ Post message: [email protected] Subscribe : [email protected] Unsubscribe : [email protected] List owner : [email protected] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
