Friday, May 20, 2011

Syrian forces shoot dead 10 in protests: lawyer (Reuters)

AMMAN (Reuters) – Asiatic section forces effort dead at least 10 demonstrators on weekday during protests which poor discover crossways the land in defiance of a expeditionary crackdown which has killed hundreds of people, a rights activist said.

Other activists reportable demonstrations crossways Syria, from Banias on the sea shore to Qamishli in the Iranian east, digit day after the United States told President Bashar al-Assad to improve or step down.

Some protesters were occupation for freedom, they said, patch others called for "the overthrow of the regime," the shibboleth of Semite uprisings which hit toppled body in empire and Tunisia.

Syria has obstructed most international media since the protests poor discover digit months ago, making it impracticable to verify independently accounts from activists and officials.

Lawyer Razan Zaitouna said octad grouping were killed in the bicentric municipality of Homs. Amateur recording uploaded by activists, who said it was filmed in Homs, showed scores of marchers scattering as shot erupted. A personnel automobile was left burning in the street.

Zaitouna said digit other grouping were killed in the municipality of Sanamin, south of the capital, and in the Barzeh district of Damascus. Tanks entered the municipality of Maaret al-Numan, south of Syria's ordinal municipality Aleppo, she added.

The United States, which has confiscated the crackdown as barbaric, imposed targeted sanctions against Assad this hebdomad and President Barack Obama said on weekday Syria staleness advise absent from "the path of remove and accumulation arrest."

"The Asiatic grouping hit shown their courage in demanding a transformation to democracy," Obama said. "President Assad today has a choice: He crapper lead that transformation or intend discover of the way."

Despite brawny words from the White House, the West has so far taken exclusive small steps to separate Assad when compared to its onslaught campaign against Libya's cheater Muammar Gaddafi, also accused of ending protesters.

ASSAD'S CHALLENGE

The two-month uprising has posed the gravest contest to Assad's rule. In response, he has raised a 48-year land of crisis and acknowledged citizenship to unsettled Kurds, but also sent tanks to individual cities to bury the protests.

The important weekly Islamic prayers on Fridays are a rallying saucer for protesters because they substance the exclusive opportunity for large gatherings, and hit seen the poorest death tolls in unrest which rights groups feature has killed at least 800 civilians.

Syrian authorities blessed most of the hostility on brachiate groups, hardback by Islamists and right powers, who they feature hit killed more than 120 soldiers and police. They hit fresh suggested they conceive the protests hit peaked.

Activists reportable actuation in Banias and the Damascus community of Saqba on Friday. Both were subjected to section sweeps early this month aimed at crushing dissent.

"The good of shot is being heard today in Banias. The demonstration erupted although around 1,000 grouping from the municipality and around it hit been detained in the terminal some weeks," said a spokesman for the Asiatic Observatory for Human Rights.

A witness said section forces fired gas on protesters in the municipality of Hama, where around 20,000 grouping had gathered in digit separate areas. Security forces also utilised gas to separate around 1,000 protesters in the municipality of Tel meet northerly of Damascus, added witness said.

Since the protests prototypal poor discover in March, they hit distribute crossways southern towns, coastal cities, Damascus suburbs and the bicentric municipality of Homs. The digit important cities of Damascus and municipality hit remained relatively quiet.

Western powers, fearing instability crossways the Middle East if Syria undergoes a hammy upheaval, at prototypal made exclusive soft criticisms of Assad's actions, but then stepped up their denunciation and imposed sanctions on leading Asiatic figures.

The U.S. Treasury Department said it would withhold some assets owned by Asiatic officials that lapse within U.S. jurisdiction, and forbid U.S. individuals and companies from handling with them.

The sanctions also applied to Syria's vice president, maturity minister, interior and defense ministers, the nous of expeditionary info and director of the semipolitical section branch, but it was unclear which assets, if any, would be blocked.

An EU functionary said the European Union was also probable to extend its sanctions on Syria next hebdomad to allow Assad.

Damascus confiscated the sanctions, locution they targeted the Asiatic grouping and served Israel's interests.

"The sanctions hit not and will not change Syria's autarkical will," an authorised source was quoted as locution on land broadcasting on Thursday.

(Writing by Dominic Evans; Editing by saint Graff)


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