… But into what exactly? As deadly battles rage on
throughout the country, and the international community continues to differ any
decision on intervention to some undermined point in a seemingly mythical near future,
in the hope that the situation will miraculously work itself out, somehow, while,
somehow, producing all the “right” results, Syria’s myriad opposition groups and
coalitions are now rushing headlong to form myriad competing transitional governments,
each armed with its own detailed transitional plan. Moreover, we now have the Americans
and the Germans
competing to take credit for helping some in the Syrian opposition form a
transitional plan in what was supposed to be an exercise wholly-owned by the
Syrians! But initial suppositions change, I guess, especially when the
Americans and the Germans need to show that they are doing something at a time
when they are doing absolutely nothing. Meanwhile, the killing, the pounding of
cities, the cold-blooded massacres, continue, unfettered, unabated, unrelenting.
Oh, this will be the Mother of All Transitions all right. But again, into what
exactly?
Tuesday July
31, 2012
Today’s Death toll: 86.
The Breakdown:
24 in Damascus and Suburb, 19 in Aleppo, 13 in Idlib, 11 in Homs, 10 in Deir
Ezzor, 7 in Daraa and 1 in Lattakia.
Cities & Towns Under Shelling: Harasta,
Arbeen, Moadamiah, Harran Al-Awameed, Ain Terma, Zabadani, Madaya, Eltal, Dmeir,
Hameh, Yelda, Rankous, Qarrah (Damascus Suburbs), Sit Zeinab, Al-Qadam, Midan, Al-Hajar Al-Aswad, Yarmouk, Kafar
Sousseh, Mazzeh, Qaboun, Barzeh (Damascus City), Daraa City, Khirbet Al-Ghazaleh, Tafas, Bostra Al-Sham, Na’eemah,
Mseifrah, Jimreen, Hraak (Daraa), Rastan, Talbisseh, Houla, Tal Kalakh, Al-Qusayr, Al-Hosn, Al-Ghanto,
Al-Bouaydah, Old Homs (Homs Province), Hreitan, Elbab, Eizaz, Marei, Bayanoun (Aleppo
Province), Haffeh, Jabal Al-Akrad (Lattakia), Deir Ezzor City, Mouhassan, Albou Kamal (Deir
Ezzor Province), Kafar Zeiteh, Hawash,
Shahshabo, Hama City (Hama Province), Jabal Al-Zawiyeh, Ma’rrat Al-Nouman, Saraqib, Maar Shoureen, Ariha,
Kafroumah, Al-Rami, Khan Shaikhoon (Idlib).
News
Op-Eds
& Special Reports
Syria's
Kurds Unite against Assad, but Not with Opposition A
sudden political shift among Syria's three million Kurds, who now control much
of the country's border with Turkey, provides an opportunity for the United
States to better coordinate its policy with regional allies and to encourage
the Syrian opposition to respect minority rights.
As
Syrian War Drags On, Jihadists Take Bigger Role As
the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad’s government grinds on with no
resolution in sight, Syrians involved in the armed struggle say it is becoming
more radicalized: homegrown Muslim jihadists, as well as small groups of
fighters from Al Qaeda, are taking a more prominent role and demanding a say in
running the resistance.
Spinmeister
Ammar al-Wawi Peddles Upbeat Message of Syrian Rebellion As
the Assad regime bombards Aleppo, the rebels are desperate not only to repel the
military, but to shore up morale and build outside support. Ammar al-Wawi, the
Free Syrian Army’s leading spin doctor, tells Mike Giglio the government is
“like the walking dead.”
For
besieged Syrian dictator Assad, only exit may be body bag “In
his mind he is fighting against the imperialists and their pernicious allies
for the people of Syria,” Lesch said. “He believes that’s his legacy. Perhaps
that is the way he will want to go down.”
Syria
rebels suspicious over defector's motives Ammar Abdulhamid,
a Washington-based Syrian dissident, said that while Tlass could provide
valuable information, the opposition on the ground will not accept him as a
leader. After so many months of "confrontations and sacrifice," he
said, "legitimate leaders of the transitional period can only rise from
the ranks of the internal revolutionary movement."
In
cooperation with Impunity Watch and the Summer Institute for Human Rights and Genocide
Studies in Buffalo, it's my pleasure to announce the launch of the "I Am
Syria" Campaign - an effort designed to raise awareness in the U.S. and
the world regarding the revolution in Syria and the massacres perpetrated daily
by pro-Assad militias and troops, highlighting the need for immediate
international action. You can follow our activities on YouTube,
Facebook, Twitter and our official website. Please,
"Like" us and spread the word…
The Battle for Aleppo City
One of the main factors helping the rebels in their fight for the city
so far is the increased number of desertions in Assad armies, while not all
deserters are choosing to become defectors at this stage, but clearly, and as
reports by locals who came in contact with the deserters and often provided
them shelter, soldiers in Assad’s army, especially the Sunnis, are becoming
increasingly aware and resentful of their role as fodder. Many are also clearly
ill-fed as well as ill-informed about the situation, they don’t believe their
commanders, but they don’t enough about the rebels to know if they could trust
them. Many just want to go home to their families, or at least they regions.
Scenes from the Battle of Salaheddine: A MIG in action http://youtu.be/Qa9fBOgOW_k The pounding
http://youtu.be/x1mHxpbPhec , http://youtu.be/WYhdp3kuZv0 , http://youtu.be/WYhdp3kuZv0 , http://youtu.be/mTvHu2OmeEs More MIG action
http://youtu.be/gd1zeql4E4o , http://youtu.be/jtUso_U04zs Al-Jazeerah
correspondent is hit during his coverage of the battles http://youtu.be/OpCnO2YtceY At end of
the day, the rebels remain in control, as one of their leaders speaking from
his headquarters in Salaheddine assures us http://youtu.be/WejTfY-oYVw
Impact of shelling http://youtu.be/sBbYxgFmFx8
, http://youtu.be/ZnAdHH0Eyfo More
scenes from the ballte http://youtu.be/MbDMbu4F1Wk
In order to control Aleppo City, Assad relied heavily on two Sunni
clans of smugglers: Al Birri and Al Hmeideh. Today, rebels put an end to
the rule of al Birri, killing and capturing many of their senior members
including their top leader, Ali Zein Al-Abdeen Birri, shown here http://youtu.be/RJMiMuMUk9I Despite
specific instructions from rebel leaders to refrain from summary executions,
Ali and few of his commanders were executed http://youtu.be/5Pjk1sYEjuU
In Bab Al-Nayrab Neighborhood, rebels wrest control of the local
police station killing everyone inside http://youtu.be/bhSMVXyA8yc
The protests we hear at the end is against shooting the dead bodies in order to
conserve the dwindling supplies of ammunition. The rebels lose fighters too http://youtu.be/gXUzTPMKQ6A Scenes from the
battle http://youtu.be/9HXasuWYeqg
In Salihein, rebels capture and kill the local police chief, Ali
Nasr, who chose to fight to the end, and drag his body in the streets http://youtu.be/V8NLDfHLyeI , http://youtu.be/cFhbAflScWI Rebels had
given the General a chance to give himself up along with his men, but he
refused http://youtu.be/4cZCRJdc7QA
some of the soldiers who surrendered himself http://youtu.be/11LAIJF7vN0 Rebels
celebrate their victory http://youtu.be/kxvyY5tVF74
More scenes from the battle http://youtu.be/Yt3BJlZQgjY
The battle started at dawn http://youtu.be/gXSN1q-GEbg
In Marjeh, rebels battle to “liberate” the local police station http://youtu.be/WrjmsJuo1h0 , http://youtu.be/PuXlUCuVVQA
The police station in Hanano, after “liberation” http://youtu.be/IOA7ItCz3uE , http://youtu.be/6yEzU5r8ACk , http://youtu.be/kALkZkME5HY One of the
torture devices used in Hanano station http://youtu.be/17UBC-bU1NA
On July 30, head of the Aleppo Military Council, Abdul Jabbar Okaidi, toured
parts of the liberated neighborhoods, Al-Shar Neighborhood, and was warmly
welcomed by then local inhabitants http://youtu.be/94FIRFDvc2U
, http://youtu.be/Iy_tmXm8llE , http://youtu.be/HdYecOBc-r4 Un Monitors
also paid a visit to the city and met leaders of Al-Tawhid Brigade http://youtu.be/__OIWNtAOJM
Other neighborhood in Aleppo city remain under the control of pro-Assad
troops and militias http://youtu.be/VRVX5kiTRiQ
, http://youtu.be/clhXH9KNyzw
While Aleppo City and the Rural areas to the North have come under
rebel control for the most part, the regrouping process to the south continues,
with the formation of a new brigade http://youtu.be/gMpU7bzIcII
But more units are formed in the north as well http://youtu.be/FXO7Hj1pdq4
Other Highlights
In Damascus Suburbs, the pounding of Eastern Ghoutah Region
continues: Harasta http://youtu.be/wguKbLnQGE8
tanks and helicopter gunships subject the suburb of Zamalka to heavy
pounding http://youtu.be/W6xiJtVsQAA
The dead line the streets http://youtu.be/2ZKXlPc5RxE
, http://youtu.be/aZnTn8fb9ns Saving
the injured http://youtu.be/qUulgHgTA9M
In nearby Yelda, the pounding claims more lives (July 30) http://youtu.be/xVKhGfecLYw In harasta, People
in Eastern Ghoutah keep regrouping as they welcome more defectors http://youtu.be/AIFVFRNcPBY In Ain Terma,
rebels fight back http://youtu.be/lDBkSpqvrw4
and destroy a tank http://youtu.be/a6kyiQusz_k
, http://youtu.be/smlRmHtBQAA
In Yabroud to the north, flood gave people a respite from the
shelling http://youtu.be/6YcAJK12vy0
In Damascus City, another massacre uncovered in Al-Hajar Al-Aswad
http://youtu.be/UuVe9hWLoRM
Sheikh Miskeen, Daraa Province: mew massacre (July 30) http://youtu.be/tAmDQIDKVms , http://youtu.be/dVkJnQWDAOk Locals say
the people were burnt alive http://youtu.be/d7Pbhz-wLQ0
In Daraa City, we can see pro-Assad troops as they remove the
bodies of the dead and injured from a car they hit and take them away on board
their tank http://youtu.be/lLR_Uy0owtQ
The continuous pounding of Daraa City claims more lives http://youtu.be/vAVAmswAAQQ
The pounding of Talbisseh, Homs Province, continues http://youtu.be/LPakyV-Q_Mw , http://youtu.be/sq7KZKodRwY Locals keep
finding bodies in the nearby fields http://youtu.be/tPJFXa73tjM
The pounding of Old Neighborhoods in Homs City continues http://youtu.be/zTkAnhgd96g In Qusayr,
people the spirit of defiance alive, despite the continuing siege and pounding http://youtu.be/0DQJexoEKR0
The pounding of Ghneimiyeh Village in Lattakia http://youtu.be/wF68fiM2xVI Akko http://youtu.be/aoHmyxfN5ag
In Deir Ezzor Province, the pounding of the town of Mayadeen
continues http://youtu.be/xjq73cNBRLk
, http://youtu.be/jNTZyRzqfJM But
defections keep plaguing Assad troops, as more of them form a new rebel unit http://youtu.be/S0bHufMbJso Scenes from
a local battle http://youtu.be/OKxXvCCJ2RA
, http://youtu.be/xc9Dw5UOeVo
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