Thursday 4 October 2012

Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: Footage of the 15 year old child, Hamza Louay, after his body was returned to his family in 1/10/2012: Hamza was taken by the Syrian authorities on 7/9/2012 in the Asali neighbourhood. He was tortured to death by the Syrian regime, he was interrogated and killed in the counter-terrorism branch of the state security, the branch is run by Ali Zaki. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASNktKRRA3c&feature=player_embedded

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Final death toll for Thursday 4/10/2012

Approximately 180 Syrian were killed yesterday;

The dead include: 79 unarmed civilians (3 children) , 45 rebel fighters, 4 defected soldiers and 48 regime forces.

- In Reef Dimashq 49 were killed ( 14 rebel fighters, a young girl and 2 women).

- In Aleppo province 34 were killed (15 rebel fighters, a child, 3 women and 2 unidentified corpses).

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NBC: UN Security Council condemns Syria shelling of Turkey ‘in the strongest terms’

Updated at 6:46 p.m. ET: The United Nations Security Council on Thursday condemned a mortar attack by Syria on a Turkish border town that killed five people and demanded that “such violations of international law stop immediately and are not repeated.”

“The members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the shelling by the Syrian armed forces of the Turkish town of Akcakale, which resulted in the deaths of five civilians, all of whom were women and children, as well as a number of injuries. The members of the Security Council expressed their sincere condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government and people of Turkey,” the Security Council said in a statement.

“The members of the Security Council underscored that this incident highlighted the grave impact the crisis in Syria has on the security of its neighbors and on regional peace and stability. The members of the Council demanded that such violations of international law stop immediately and are not repeated. The members of the Security Council called on the Syrian Government to fully respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its neighbors.”

The mortar attack happened on Wednesday and Turkey responded by striking targets in Syria later the same day and Thursday.

Seeking to unwind the most serious cross-border escalation in its 18-month-old crackdown on dissent, Damascus apologized through the United Nations for the shelling and said it would not happen again, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay said.

Syria’s staunch ally Russia said it had received assurances from Damascus that the mortar strike was a tragic accident…

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UN chief urges restraint amid rising tensions along Syrian-Turkish border

4 October 2012 – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today voiced his alarm at escalating tensions along the Syrian-Turkish border, and called on all concerned to exercise maximum restraint.

At least six Turkish civilians were reportedly killed yesterday after mortar fire from Syria hit the town of Akcakale in Turkey’s Sanliurfa province, which shares a border with Syria. Turkey’s parliament today authorized further military action against Syria, as Turkey began its second day of shelling targets within Syria in response to yesterday’s incident, according to media reports.

Mr. Ban has “repeatedly made clear his concern about the spillover of the Syrian crisis into neighbouring countries, as occurred yesterday with Turkey,” said a statement issued by his spokesperson.

“The Secretary-General calls on all concerned to abandon the use of violence, exercise maximum restraint and exert all efforts to move toward a political solution,” it added.

More than 18,000 people, mostly civilians, have died in Syria since the uprising against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad began last year. A further 2.5 million Syrians urgently need humanitarian aid, according to UN estimates.

“As the situation inside Syria deteriorates yet further – including the atrocious terrorist bombings in Aleppo this week which killed dozens of people including civilians – the risks of regional conflict and the threat to international peace and security are also increasing,” the statement noted.

Furthermore, it added that the Joint Special Representative for Syria of the UN and the League of Arab States, Lakhdar Brahimi, has been in communication with officials from Turkey and Syria to encourage an easing of tensions.

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Video: Syria: William Hague condemns ‘outrageous’ mortar attack on …
??	www.telegraph.co.uk/…/syria/…/Syria-William-Hague-…NEW11 hours ago ‘West wants to stay out of Syrian war’. 04 Oct 2012. Footage from Turkey shows the imminent aftermath of …

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NOW! Lebanon
[local time]  21:58 Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday his country has no intention of going to war with Syria, while Syria’s ambassador to the United Nations said that Damascus “is not seeking any escalation with any of its neighbors, including Turkey.”
 20:49 Syria’s UN representative Bashar al-Jaafari said his country did not apologize for Turkey border shelling but rather offered condolences to victims’ families, Al-Jazeera reported.
 20:49 Syrian regime forces shelled Al-Mousayfra after members of the rebel Free Syrian Army overtook an air defense unit, Al-Arabiya quoted activists as saying.
 19:50 Turkish authorities arrested Syrian activist Naji Tayyara at Ataturk International Airport, Al-Arabiya quoted activists as saying.
 19:49 Advocacy group Amnesty International called Thursday on the Syrian authorities to either charge or release two human rights activists detained in Damascus earlier in the week.
 18:36 China on Thursday called on Turkey and Syria to show restraint and respect each other’s sovereignty, according to state media, following Ankara’s decision to authorize military action against its neighbor.
 18:14 Russian objections to a draft UN statement condemning Syria’s deadly shelling of Turkey sent the Security Council back into consultations, diplomats said Thursday.
 17:17 The rebel Free Syrian Army announced that it had shot down a regime fighter jet near the Kwaires airport in Aleppo, Al-Jazeera quoted activists as saying.
 16:39 A number of people were killed and others wounded in the shelling on the neighborhood of Qudssaya near Damascus, Al-Jazeera television reported.
mg src=”http://nowlebanon.com/Library/Images/Uploaded%20Images/a/news.gif” alt=”" border=”0″ /> 16:21 While Western powers quickly backed Ankara after deadly Syrian fire on a Turkish border village, it is unlikely its NATO partners, above all the United States, would opt for a military response, analysts said.
 15:47 Thursday’s death toll across Syria has risen to 72 people, Al-Arabiya quoted activists as saying.
 15:34 British Foreign Secretary Wiliam Hague expressed “strong solidarity with our NATO ally Turkey” on Thursday, after Syrian shelling killed five Turkish citizens inside Turkey.
 15:20 Syria has admitted it was responsible for a shelling that killed five civilians on Turkish soil and apologized, Turkey’s deputy prime minister said on Thursday.
 14:51 The Turkish parliament on Thursday approved cross-border operations in Syria, AFP reported.
 14:41 A group of soldiers defected from the Syrian army’s Seventh Brigade in the Damascus town of Zakiyeh, Al-Jazeera reported.
 13:54 Syria has recognized that its deadly shelling of a Turkish town was a “tragic accident” and has vowed not to let it happen again, its main ally Russia said on Thursday.
 13:45 Abu Ahmed was a tailor before the war but now he has no more customers as ferocious fighting has ripped through the historic heart of Syria’s commercial capital Aleppo.
 13:17 Syria’s chief ally Iran on Thursday urged Syria and Turkey to both show “restraint” following a border shelling exchange that threatened a broader conflict, according to the Fars news agency.
 13:07 France on Thursday said a Syrian attack on Turkey which killed five civilians was a serious threat to global security and peace and called for an immediate halt to such strikes.
 13:07 Germany’s foreign minister on Thursday called on Turkey to act in a “measured” way after it resumed shelling Syrian positions in reprisal for mortar fire which killed five Turkish civilians.
 12:55 Syrian regime forces killed 25 people on Thursday, Al-Arabiya television reported.
 12:30 EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton on Thursday condemned Syria for shelling that killed civilians in Turkey, and urged restraint after Ankara returned fire.
 12:15 Russia on Thursday voiced concern at the “deteriorating” situation between Syria and Turkey, where cross-border shelling has heightened tensions.
 11:23 Turkish lawmakers on Thursday held an emergency session to vote on a government request for a cross-border military operation, a day after five nationals died in Syrian shelling.
 11:07 The Syrian army shelled several areas of Aleppo on Thursday, a day after a string of bombings claimed by a shadowy Islamist group killed at least 48 people in the country’s second city, a watchdog said.
 10:04 An explosion followed by an exchange of fire with rebels in Damascus province on Thursday left 18 members of Syria’s elite Republican Guard force dead, a watchdog said.
 9:57 Israel Defense Forces intelligence chief Aviv Kochavi on Wednesday warned that terrorists could infiltrate the Israeli-Syrian border hours after a group of Syrians approaching the border raised alarms in Syria, Israeli online YNet news website reported Thursday.
 8:44 Turkish troops pounded targets in Syria on Thursday morning in reprisal for cross-border fire that killed five Turkish civilians the previous day, a security source said.
 8:21 Several Syrian soldiers died when Turkish troops shelled their military post in response to earlier cross-border mortar fire which smashed into a Turkish town killing five people, a watchdog said on Thursday.
 7:58 Britain on Thursday denounced as “outrageous” the Syrian shelling of a Turkish border town that killed five civilians.
 7:57 Aleppo soap is famous the world over for its hydrating and soothing properties, but enthusiasts will find it hard to come by now that the war in Syria has brought exports to a halt, one manufacturer says.
 7:55 Turkey called on the UN Security Council Wednesday to take “necessary action” to halt Syrian aggression against its territory after cross-border shelling killed five Turkish civilians.
 7:30 MORNING LEADER: Syria’s conflict escalated when deadly cross-border shelling into Turkey drew return fire that continued after dark, as well as sharp condemnation from NATO and major Western powers. Inside the conflict-torn country, meanwhile, bloody fighting raged between regime and rebel forces, and a series of massive bomb blasts ripped through the battleground of Aleppo, claiming scores of lives.
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REUTERS: Turkey steps up Syria strikes, says will defend borders

AKCAKALE, Turkey – Turkey stepped up retaliatory artillery strikes on a Syrian border town on Thursday, killing several Syrian soldiers, while its parliament approved further military action in the event of another spillover of the Syrian conflict. | Video

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BBC: Turkey ‘will not start Syria war’

Turkey’s PM says his country has no intention of starting a war, after the parliament in Ankara authorised military action inside Syria.

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Guardian: Turkish government authorises raids against Syria