Thursday 13 September 2012
September 13, 2012 by sks
Filed under News, Syrian Revolution
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: Final death toll for Thursday 13/9/2012: More than 190 Syrians killed. The dead: 113 unarmed civilians, 20 rebel fighters, 6 members of the Popular Committees, 4 defected soldiers (including a defected lieutenant), 19 unidentified corpses, and 28 members of the Syrian armed forces.
113 Unarmed civilians:
-In Aleppo Province 36 civilians were killed. 8 were killed by bombardment on the Karam al
-In Idlib Province 8 civilians were killed. 2 women were killed, one of them by bombardment on the Ihsim village in Jabal al-Zawiya and the other from the Bsames village was shot by regime forces in the Tadamun neighbourhood in Damascus. A young man from the town of Jozef was summarily executed after being abducted by pro-regime gunmen in the Tishreen neighbourhood of Damascus. 2 civilians from the Kafrbatikkh town were shot by regime forces. A civilian from the Jabal al-Zawiya was shot by regime forces in the city of Damascus. 1 was killed by bombardment on the Salqin town. 1 was shot by regime forces in the Beftamoon village in Reef Idlib.
-In Reef Dimashq Province 38 civilians were killed. 2 civilians from the town of Babeela were killed, 1 was shot by a checkpoint near the Yalda town, and the other was shot by regime forces in the town. 4 men and a child were killed by the regime bombardment and gunfire in the city of Douma. 5 civilian men were killed by regime forces who stormed the Mazra’a neighbourhood of Harasta. 2 killed by regime fire in Qatana and Mou’adamiya. A woman was killed by a sniper in the town of Zayabiya. 1 was killed by bombardment on the A’rtuz town in Reef Dimashq. 17 summarily executed bodies were found killed in the town of Yalda. 5 men were killed by the pro-regime Popular Committees in Sayyeda Zeinab area.
*The Engineer Ahmad al-Turk, a previous member of the Syrian parliament, was shot when Syrian regime forces raided his house in the city of Harasta today at dawn, they also arrested his son. Ahmad al-Turk was arrested last may.*
-In Latakia Province 2 civilians were killed. 1 was killed by bombardment on the Qastal Ma’af village. 1 was killed by bombardment on the Marj al-Zawiya village in Reef Latakia.
-In Damascus Province 6 civilians were killed. 1 was killed by bombardment on the Jobar neighbourhood. 1 civilian from Jobar was killed by a sniper on the Zamalka bridge. 1 civilian from the Shaghur neighbourhood was found dead, after 5 days of being arrested by regime forces. The body of 1 civilian was found by the Filastin camp. 1 civilian from the Yarmouk camp was killed by regime forces in the town of Yalda, Reef Dimashq. 1 was killed by bombardment on the Daf al-Shok neighbourhood in Damascus city.
-In Deir Izzor Province 6 civilians killed. 1 civilian was killed by bombardment on the Hamidiya neighbourhood in the city of Deir Izzor, 2 others were killed by bombardment and gunfire in the city. 3 civilians (man, woman, child) were killed by the regime bombardment on Deir Izzor.
-In Hama Province 3 killed. 1 civilian from the Latamna town was shot by the al-U’wayna military checkpoint in Reef Hama. 1 from tel Shari’a was killed by a sniper in the town of al-Tweini. A woman was killed by bombardment on the Sahl al-Ghab village in Reef Hama.
- In Homs province 2 were killed in the city of al-Rastan, 1 is a woman who was killed by bombardment on the city.
**3 unidentified corpses were found after they were killed by point-blank shots in the A’lma town of Reef Dera’a. Information received indicates that 16 unidentified civilians were shot by regime forces in the Yelda town in Reef Dimashq.**
The SOHR documented 8 civilians who were killed by bombardment and gunshots by regime forces in the Aleppo province during the past few days.
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20 Rebel fighters:
-In Reef Dimashq 6 rebels killed. A Rebel leader was killed by gunshots and bombardment on the city of Douma. 3 rebel fighters were killed during clashes with regime forces in the city of Damascus. A rebel fighter from Zamalka was shot by regime forces in Reef Dimashq province. A rebel fighter was killed during clashes with regime forces in the al-Ziabiya town.
-In Reef Latakia 5 fighters were killed by bombardment on the Marj al-Zawiya village in Reef Latakia.
-In Aleppo Province 6 fighters were killed during clashes with regime forces in the city of Aleppo.
-In Idlib Province a rebel leader from the Kafarbateekh town was killed during clashes with regime forces in the Saraqeb city.
-In Deir Izzor Province 2 fighters killed. 1 was killed by bombardment on the Hamidiya neighbourhood in the city of Deir Izzor. 1 by clashes in the city.
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6 members of the Popular Committees were killed in the Hujeira area, a few hundred meters away from the Sayida Zainab shrine in Reef Dimashq, by clashe and rockets.
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3 defected soldiers and a defected lieutenant were killed. A defected soldier died by injuries he received earlier during clashes with regime forces.2 were killed during clashes with regime forces in Reef Dera’a. A defected lieutenant was killed during clashes in Reef Homs
No less then 28 regime forces were killed by attacks on cars during clashes in Aleppo, Damascus, Homs, Hama, Deir Izzor and Idlib.
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UN News: UN-Arab League envoy arrives in Syria for meetings with Government, opposition, civil society
The Joint Special Representative of the United Nations and the League of Arab States on the Syrian crisis, Lakhdar Brahimi, today arrived in Damascus, where he will hold talks with the Government, representatives of the opposition and members of civil society.
In a statement upon arrival in the capital city’s international airport, Mr. Brahimi said no one disagrees with the need to stop the bloodshed and restore harmony among the people in Syria.
“We came to Syria for consultation with the brotherly Syrians… There is a crisis and I think it is deteriorating,” he said.
Mr. Brahimi met this afternoon with the Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Walid Al-Moualem, with whom he had a candid and comprehensive talk about the current situation in the country.
According to his spokesperson, Mr. Brahimi emphasized during the meeting that he would spare no effort to help find a solution to the crisis and that his primary concern was the welfare of the Syrian people.
While in Syria, Mr. Brahimi will also meet with the UN country team, his spokesperson said in a statement.
Mr. Brahimi is accompanied by Mokhtar Lamani, who will remain in the Syrian capital to assume his new functions as Head of the Office of the Joint Special Representative for Syria in Damascus.
More than 18,000 people, mostly civilians, have died since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began nearly 18 months ago. Amidst reports of an escalation in violence in recent weeks in many towns and villages, as well as the country’s two biggest cities, Damascus and Aleppo, UN agencies now estimate that some 2.5 million Syrians are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.
On Monday, Mr. Brahimi had reiterated his commitment to the Syrian people during his visit to Cairo, Egypt, where he met with Arab League officials before heading to Syria. “I do know it is a very difficult task, but I believe it is not my right to refuse and to try my best to give as much help as possible to the Syrian people,” Mr. Brahimi said.
An Algerian national who has served the UN in various high-level roles over the past two decades, Mr. Brahimi has assumed the peace-facilitation role which had been carried out since February by a former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, with the aim of bringing an end to all violence and human rights violations in Syria, and promoting a peaceful solution to the conflict. Mr. Annan’s mandate ended on 31 August.
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NOW! Lebanon
[local time] 
21:27 French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in Beirut Thursday that France will not send weapons to the Syrian opposition.
19:22 Fifteen Palestinians were among the 25 people summarily executed in the town of Yalda near Damascus, Al-Jazeera television quoted activists as saying.
19:17 Thursday’s death toll in Syria has risen to 87 people, Al-Arabiya television quoted activists as saying.
18:19 Syrian regime forces summarily executed 25 people in the town of Yalda near Damascus, activists said.
18:17 Between the olive trees and the barbed wire on the Syria-Turkey border, fleeing Syrians play a daily game of cat and mouse with Turkish troops that sometimes threatens to lead to confrontation.
18:13 Thursday’s death toll in Syria has risen to 70 people, Al-Arabiya television quoted activists as saying.
17:14 Peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said on Thursday the deadly conflict in Syria was getting worse as he arrived on his first official trip aimed at ending nearly 18 months of violence.
17:02 Syrian regime forces and rebels are clashing in the Damascus area of Al-Qazaz, activists were quoted by Al-Jazeera as saying.
16:46 Syrian regime forces killed 63 people on Thursday, Al-Jazeera television quoted activists as saying.
15:23 Pope Benedict XVI visits Lebanon this week at a time when Christian refugees from the war-torn city of Aleppo in neighboring Syria are fearful for their future.
14:44 International peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi arrived in Syria on Thursday on his first visit to the strife-torn country since his appointment two weeks ago, his spokesperson said.
13:04 Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi reiterated during a visit to the EU on Thursday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad must step down as “a president that kills his own people is not acceptable.”
12:23 British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Thursday in a visit to the Iraqi capital that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime is “doomed” and should not survive.
12:17 Syrian regime helicopters shelled the Aleppo neighborhood of Tatiq al-Bab, killing 15 people, Al-Arabiya quoted activists as saying.
12:07 At least 11 people were killed in Syria on Thursday ahead of peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi’s arrival on his first official trip aimed at ending nearly 18 months of relentless and deadly violence.
11:01 Hollywood star and UN special envoy Angelina Jolie on Thursday visited Turkey’s largest camp for Syrian refugees near the border, where overjoyed thousands welcomed her, Turkish media reported.
10:44 Around 20 people were killed in Syria, mostly in Daraa, Aleppo and the Damascus district, Al-Jazeera quoted activists as saying.
10:18 Bombing in Syria’s Aleppo province killed four people overnight, while troops and rebels battled in Damascus, rebels and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
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BBC: New Syria peace envoy in Damascus
The new UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi begins his first visit to Syria since his appointment, meeting the country’s foreign minister.
He will meet opposition groups and President Bashar al-Assad on Friday.
Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem told the peace envoy that he was committed to supporting his mission, Mr Brahimi’s spokesperson said.
Thousands of people have been killed in Syria since the uprising against President Assad began in March 2011.
On his arrival in Damascus, Mr Brahimi said: “There is a crisis, no-one denies it… It is a crisis which is deteriorating, and no-one disagrees with the need to stop the bloodshed and restore harmony.”
According to Syrian state media, Mr Moualem stressed that any initiative should “focus on the Syrian people’s interest”.
The UN and Arab League’s envoy also met Mohammed Reza Shibani, the Iranian ambassador to Syria, on Thursday. The Iranian government has been a staunch supporter of Mr Assad.
Also on Thursday, Syrian government forces carried out air strikes on Syria’s commercial capital, Aleppo, activists reported.
Clashes have been reported in the western and southern parts of the city, as well as in several parts of Damascus.
When he took over the post, Mr Brahimi said bringing peace to Syria would be “nearly impossible”. He has described the bloodshed there as “staggering” and the destruction as “catastrophic”.
He was appointed to the role in August after Kofi Annan’s peace plan for Syria failed to affect the crisis.
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Reuters: Syria envoy in capital as Assad forces pound rebels
BEIRUT – International peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi arrived in Syria’s capital on Thursday as state forces pounded its eastern outskirts to flush out rebels trying to retain a foothold in Damascus.
