Friday 26 October 2012
October 26, 2012 by sks
Filed under News, Syria, Syrian Revolution
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: Aleppo province: A Syrian Kurdish protester was killed and 5 others wounded by gun fire on a Kurdish protest, that civilians from the neighbourhoods of al-Sheikh Maqsoud and al-Ashrafiya participated in, by the Kurdish Popular Defense Committees checkpoint in between these neighbourhoods, they called for the end of clashes in their areas. Activists participating in the protest reported that rebel fighters shot at them, and warned that this may lead to clashes between Arab and Kurdish fighters in the area.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights demands an investigation in this occurrence, and warns from slipping into clashes between Kurdish and Arab fighters in Aleppo as well as other areas of Syria, since this will serve the interests of the regime in the first place, who has been trying to create conflicts between sects and ethnicities in order to eliminate the Syrian revolution, that is a revolution for all Syrians.
Final death toll for Friday 26/10/12: Around 150 Syrians killed today. The dead include: 58 unarmed civilians (5 children), 51 rebel fighters, 2 defected soldiers, and no less than 43 regime forces. 58 Unarmed Civilians:
- In Reef Dimashq 22 were killed. A woman, youth, and 2 men were shot by sniper in the Harasta city. 1 was killed by bombardment on the city of Harasta, based on activists from the area. 1 was shot by sniper in the perimeter of the A’rbin town.14 were killed in the Douma city, 1 died of wounds he received yesterday by sniper fire, and 13, including 4 children and woman, were killed by regime forces’ bombardment and gunfire, who are trying to take control over the city. 2 unidentified corpses were found in the fields of al-Keswa and al-M’adamiya towns.
- In Aleppo province 6 were killed. 1 was shot by a military checkpoint in the Seif al-Dawla neighbourhood. A woman died of wounds she received at midnight (Thursday-Friday) by bombardment on the al-Sheikh Khudur neighbourhood. 2 men were shot by sniper in the Sleiman al-Halabi neighbourhood. 2 Kurdish protesters were killed by gunfire on a Kurdish protest, where civilians, from the neighbourhoods of al-Sheikh Maqsud and al-Ashrafiya, gathered near the protection committees for Kurdish People checkpoint, in the road seperating the 2 neighbourhoods, by the asphalt factory, demanding the banishment of clashes from their areas, activists who participated in the protest said that gunfire was by opposition fighters.
- In Damascus province 14 were killed. 11 were killed by a car explosion in the al-Sherta neighbourhood of Daf al-Shok area. 2 were killed in the Jobar neighbourhood, 1 was shot by sniper and the other was by regime forces in the neighbourhood. An unidentified corpse was found in the al-Qadam neighbourhood.
- In Idlib province 4 were killed. 2 women and man died of wounds they received before yesterday by bombardment on the towns of Khan Sheikhoun and Kafrouma. 1 from the Harem town died of wounds he received earlier by regime gun fire.
- In Hama province 3 were killed. A child died of wounds he received by bombardment on the al-Hawash village of Reef Hama. A 16 year old girl died of injuries she received, days ago, during bombardment on the Hamidiya neighbourhood of Hama city. 1, from the Latamna town of Reef Hama, was killed after his detainment by regime forces, 4 days ago.
-In Dera’a province 6 were killed. A woman and man were shot by sniper in the Dera’a city. A man, from the Mahja town of Reef Dera’a, was shot by regime forces after his detainment, yesterday. 2 were shot by regime forces’ sniper in the Dera’a al-Mahata neighbourhood.1, from the Yaduda town, was killed by an explosion which shook the the Dera’a al-Mahata neighbourhood.
-In Deir Izzor province 1 was shot by regime forces in the al-O’mal neighbourhood in the city.
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51 Rebel Fighters:
- In Reef Dimashq 8 rebel fighters were killed. 7 rebel fighters were killed during clashes with regime forces in the city of Harasta. A rebel fighter was shot by sniper fire in the perimeter of the A’rbin town.
- In Homs province 3 rebel fighters were killed during clashes with regime forces in the Talkalakh town, which went on from Thursday night till 1 o’clock, after midnight of Thursday-Friday.
- In Aleppo province 28 rebel fighters were killed. 1 died of wounds he received earlier during clashes with regime forces in the perimeter of the al-Rahman mosque. 3 were killed during clashes with regime forces in Aleppo city. 2 were killed during clashes with regime forces in the Khan A’sal town of Reef Aleppo. 3 fighters from the units protecting the Kurdish people and 19 rebel fighters, of which 10 of their names were documented, were killed during clashes with each other in the perimeters of the Ashrafiya neighbourhood of Aleppo city.
- In Idlib province 11 rebel fighters were killed. 1 was killed during clashes with regime forces in Harem town of Reef Idlib. 1 from the M’aret al-Nu’man city was shot by al-Hamdiya military checkpoint. 4 unidentified rebel fighters were killed during ongoing clashes in the perimeter of the Wadi al-Deif encampment. 2 unidentified rebel fighters were found dead in western Saraqeb city. 3 fighters, from the Idlib city, were killed, 2 of them were shot by regime forces in the city, and 1 was shot by regime forces in the Aleppo city.
- In Deir Izzor province a rebel fighter was killed during clashes with regime forces after midnight of Thursday-Friday in Deir Izzor city.
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-2 defected soldiers were killed during clashes in the Deir Izzor and Reef Dimashq.
-News were received about the death of 5 men by bombardment on the Bab Hud neighbourhood of Homs city.
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- At least 43 regime forces were killed by explosions, bombardment and clashes in several Syrian provinces: 12 in Idlib, 8 Homs, 9 Reef Dimashq, 7 Dera’a, 5 Aleppo, and 2 in Deir Izzor.
21:01 Switzerland on Friday adopted new sanctions against Syria, falling into line with decisions taken by the European Union, a statement from the economy ministry in Bern said. 19:01 At least 61 people were killed on Friday in Syria on the first day of a truce to mark the Eid al-Adha Muslim holiday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. 18:08 Three Syrian soldiers were killed and eight were wounded, most of them critically, in a car bomb attack in the southern city of Daraa on Friday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. 17:24 Dozens of people were killed or wounded in a car bomb attack in southern Damascus on Friday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. 17:11 The Syrian army said on Friday it was responding to attacks by armed rebels that were in violation of a temporary ceasefire agreed for a four-day Muslim holiday. 16:18 Syrian regime forces killed five people at an army checkpoint in Al-Qusur, Al-Arabiya quoted activists as saying. 14:15 Clashes erupted between regime forces and the rebel Free Syrian Army in the neighborhood of Al-Aasali in Damascus, Al-Jazeera quoted activists as saying. 14:14 German Chancellor Angela Merkel will hold talks next week with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on bilateral ties and the crisis in Syria, her spokesperson said here on Friday. 13:26 Friday’s death toll in Syria reached 14 people, Al-Arabiya quoted activists as saying. 12:30 The Syrian ceasefire between the Assad regime and the rebels has “collapsed” in several regions, AFP reported activists said. 12:22 Three people were killed by shelling and sniper fire in a Damascus suburb, activists said. 12:12 Eight people were killed by Syrian regime forces in the districts of Damascus, Homs and Edleb despite a ceasefire that came into force on Friday, activists said. 11:53 Regime forces clashed with the rebel Free Syrian Army in Al-Madiniya in Damascus, Al-Arabiya quoted activists as saying. 10:03 Several anti-regime protests kicked off across Syria on Friday, including in the towns of Daraa, in the neighborhood of Hanano in Aleppo and in the districts of Damascus and Edleb.The protest took place despite the UN brokered ceasefire that came into force early on Friday.
11:51 A Youtube video purportedly filmed on Friday shows anti-regime protesters in Syria’s Tal al-Abyad. An armed rebel could also be seen leading protesters in chanting slogans against President Bashar al-Assad. 10:33 Fierce clashes between rebels and Syrian regime forces broke out Friday around a military base near the northern town of Maaret al-Numan in the “first violation” of a ceasefire, activists said. 9:29 Syrian security forces opened fire to disperse anti-regime protesters in the Al-Qaboun neighborhood in Damascus, Al-Jazeera quoted activists as saying. 9:18 Anti-regime demos began in Syria on the first day of a truce agreed to by the government and rebels for the Eid al-Adha holiday, activists said. 8:45 Syrian regime forces fired tear gas on anti-regime demonstrators near the Martyrs’ Mosque in Al-Raqqa in Damascus, activists said. 8:22 Several people were wounded when Syrian security forces opened fire on a mosque in Daraa’s Ankhal during Friday prayers, activists said. 7:33 Calm prevails over Syria as ceasefire comes into effect, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Friday.…
Nowhere left to run for Syrians under siege: ATAREB, Syria – For two months, Dana and her 12 children fled from village to village trying to escape bombardment by Syrian forces. Finally, she gave up and took them back home.
“Everywhere we went, the bombs found us. If we’re going to die, I want it to be in our own house,” she says, rocking two young daughters in her lap.
After months of relentless shelling across Syria’s northern provinces, many Syrians like Dana have given up trying to flee and instead have tried to live a life under the bombs.
Despite the shudders of artillery fire in the distance, young women in Syria’s northern town of Atareb stroll their babies in prams along cratered pavements and past collapsed buildings while children play soccer in the street.
Farmers pick cotton in the surrounding fields, ignoring the scorch marks left from mortar bombs around them.
Outside the cracked walls of her grey concrete home, Dana, a small woman in a yellow veil, has stacked piles of shrapnel that she and her children sweep out of her house each day.
“You’d think I’d be used to it by now, but I still cry if I hear a fighter jet come. My kids and I all know our place – some behind the fridge, or behind the washer, in the backroom,” she sighs, wringing her hands, which are covered in scratches from her shattered windows.
Atareb, a town of about 20,000 in Aleppo province, became a ghost town two months ago when the army began heavy bombardment to try to root out rebels fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad.
The shelling has not stopped since then, but many residents say they are tired of fleeing, only to find their next refuge becoming a target as well. A truce marking a Muslim holiday that was due to have come into effect on Friday crumbled almost before it began.
Across the country, Syrians have become weary at the 19-month revolt that has turned into civil war, and some are starting to head home instead of escaping across the borders.
With the economy in ruins, most are jobless and cannot afford to travel.Turkey is now letting in only Syrians with passports, and conditions at the ramshackle displacement camps inside the country are so bad that many poorer Syrians prefer to risk staying at home.
TRAIL OF DESTRUCTION
Locals estimate about 30 percent of residents have returned to Atareb. Bakeries are open and vendors lay out their vegetables for sale along charred storefronts in the town’s marketplace, the rooftops riddled by sprays of shrapnel.
Ignoring the danger, one man has decided to rebuild. Hassan Saeed, a portly man in a grey robe, watches three young men layer wet concrete along the second floor. He is desperate to reopen his chicken roastery.
“A rich man can afford to wait for the shelling to stop, but I need to work. I have eight children to feed,” he said.
More than 32,000 people have died in the unrest, a number that has rapidly escalated since Assad’s forces began to use air power to strike at rebel-held areas.
“These days, we are happy when it is just mortar bombs or rockets instead of the jets. Every day we get hit with something. You never know what it will be,” says Mohammed Sayed, a greying 50-year-old resident. He sits on his rusted motor bike, examining the damage on his street.
Several houses have collapsed, spewing their contents out and leaving a trail of destroyed lives – a baby’s shirt, tattered papers, a spoon.
“That was a vacuum bomb. They drop it from a plane and for 20 seconds nothing, then you hear it sucks up the air and bam! Everything collapses,” Sayed said.
Dana’s family is the only one on her street. A third of the houses are now only dusty piles of rubble.
“We rented a house in a safe area closer to the border for a month but we couldn’t afford it any more. I sold all of my jewelry and got about 25,000 lira ($370) for it. But now I only have 5,000 left and my husband still can’t find a job,” she said.
Wealthier residents have sent food and water to those who have returned. Atareb has not had electricity or running water in more than a month.
Many blame the army, but others accuse the rebel Free Syrian Army for bringing them trouble.
“Everywhere these rebels go, they bring destruction,” says a woman swathed in black, cradling her baby in the doorway, surrounded by rubble. Houses on either side have toppled onto hers like dominos.
“The situation speaks for itself. It is up to God’s will now. Any moment, we could be next,” she says. “But I won’t leave my country, and I won’t leave home. We are half-dead already. At some point, your hope is just to die with some dignity.”
(Editing by Dominic Evans and Alison Williams)
