As more of our towns and neighborhoods get turned into wastelands
and as we pull the pieces of our dying dream from under the rubble, it’s
difficult not to be angry at a world that stood by and let it happen. All of
this was foretold, the warning signs were clear, everything was taking place in
full light of day, yet they all watched, while some gambled and hedged their
bets by backing the killers, as the dream was slowly transformed into a
nightmare. All demons are loose now, and heaven only knows when and how we
could put the country back together. Still, we go on, going back has never and
can never be a legitimate option.
Wednesday
August 8, 2012
Today’s
Death toll: 150.
Cities
& Towns Under Shelling: Harasta, Arbeen, Moadamiah, Harran Al-Awameed, Deir Al-Asafeer, Ain
Terma, Zabadani, Madaya, Eltal, Dmeir, Hameh, Yelda, Rankous, Qarrah (Damascus
Suburbs), Sit Zeinab, Al-Qadam, Midan,
Tadamon, Al-Hajar Al-Aswad, Yarmouk, Kafar Sousseh, Mazzeh, Qaboun, Barzeh,
Salhiyeh, Ruknaddine, Dafelshawk (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
White
House official says Syria no-fly zone not off table "rest
assured that various options that are being talked about in the press, and
sometimes being advocated, these are things that the United States government
has been looking at very carefully, trying to understand the implications,
trying to understand the advantages and the disadvantages," he said.
In
Syria, Potential Threat to Government Air Power Emerges For the first time since the conflict in Syria began last year, an
activist opposed to President Bashar al-Assad has publicly presented possible
evidence that the antigovernment forces have obtained a heat-seeking,
shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missile.
Russian
general denies reports he was killed by rebels in Syria Vladimir Petrovich Kuzheyev meets reporters in Moscow after video
statement from rebel group shows copy of his Syrian-army issued ID.
Syria
military launches assault on key district in Aleppo Reports conflict on whether Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces
or Syrian rebels have control of the Salahuddin district of Aleppo.
Al-Qaida
fighters infiltrate Syria At least
262 al-Qaida militants are now operating in the border area between Turkey and
Syria and rebels say another group of fighters are living in a tented camp just
outside Aleppo, Syria’s largest city. NBC’s Richard Engel reports.
Seized
Iranians in Syria Are Army Retirees, Salehi Says “We rejected reports saying these individuals are part of the
Revolutionary Guards and explained that a number of retired individuals from
several ministries and the guards had signed up to make the pilgrimage,” Salehi
said. “Pilgrimage trips to Syria had been interrupted but resumed recently as
we can’t stop people from visiting the holy shrine.”
Neighbors
pull dead from Syria house rubble Rebels
have said Assad's forces have been attacking rural areas in an effort to put
pressure on those opposition fighters who have rural backgrounds.
Syria
border standoff a new front in Iraq-Kurdish rift The standoff, for a moment last week so close to confrontation, is
the most dramatic illustration of a growing rift between Baghdad and the
autonomous northern region of Kurdistan. Frictions over oil revenues are
exacerbated now by conflicting views of the Syrian rebellion and by territorial
disputes that pose questions about the unity of Iraq.
Op-Eds
& Special Reports
Malcolm Rifkind, former Britain's
defense minister and foreign secretary under Prime Minister John Major, writes:
A
Call to Arm Syria's Rebels The longer war drags on, the more likely
a legitimate struggle for self-determination will descend further into a cycle
of communal violence, poisoning the possibility of a mutually acceptable
political settlement. Without such a settlement, Syrian and regional violence
will continue — whether the Ba’athist regime survives or not.
The Washington Post Editorial Board explains
how to “Get…
around a dead-end in Syria” The only workable policy in Syria is one
that aims at ending the civil war as quickly as possible with a victory for the
opposition. A coup by regime elements that removes Mr. Assad may still be
possible, but only if generals perceive that the war is lost. That means supplying
the rebels with the arms they need to stop the tanks and planes of the Assad
forces. To protect civilians, safe zones can be established along Syria’s
borders with Turkey and Jordan, with help from Turkey or NATO.
Echoes
of Syria's War in the Golan Heights With close-knit families and
clans here already divided, there is fear on both sides that a slide into
bloodshed would be disastrous. Druse community leaders have acted quickly to
broker understandings and restore calm.
Syria
rebels see future fight with foreign radicals Some fighters who have
come to Syria are idealists who believe in jihad, or holy war, for oppressed
Muslims, and would probably return home in a post-Assad era. But others are al
Qaeda-linked fighters who may want a base in Syria. Their numbers are still
low, but enough to worry countries fearing Iraq-style bloodshed in Syria, a
country straddling the lines of most ethnic and regional conflicts in the
Middle East.
"We
could not endure anymore," Aleppo refugee says Some 2,400
Syrians reached Turkey overnight, the state-run Turkish Anatolian news agency
said on Wednesday, adding to the 45,000 who have fled to Turkey since the
uprising against President Bashar al-Assad started 17 months ago.
Two
days in Aleppo: Snipers, temporary graveyards and stairwell beds Account
of what Wedeman saw in Aleppo, including his harrowing trip into the city past
snipers, street vendors selling their wares as bombs fall, and a lack of
enthusiasm for the rebels' battle among many civilians.
Assaults
on Aleppo come in response to Syrian defections The massive
bombardment of rebels in Syria's largest city aims to prove to supporters of
Bashar Assad that his regime is in control despite defections of top officials,
activists and experts said Wednesday.
Video Highlights
In Da’el, Daraa Province, helicopter gunships take part in the pounding
http://youtu.be/dElNKypDUp0 , http://youtu.be/jttXWC0XiO4 A mortar
round falls on a funeral for local activists http://youtu.be/UCfyAEQTwd4 People rush
to pull bodies from under the rubble http://youtu.be/aM-rWFocNsY
In Homs City, many neighborhoods lie now in rubble after months
of indiscriminate shelling http://youtu.be/E8GdERCtlN0
http://youtu.be/f-rz03vx3Kg , http://youtu.be/b8ISXLDJgUU With this,
500,000 people, the overwhelming majority of whom Sunni Muslims who are now
scattered all over the country, have effectively been deprived their homes.
This makes the Alawites and Christians, with close to 250,000, the new majority
population in town. The remaining Sunnis constitute around 50,000. But the pounding
of their neighborhoods continues http://youtu.be/gfqjgVclJLM
In Tal Rifa’at, Aleppo Province, the pounding by fighter
jets http://youtu.be/MX5Dlpkz2y8 left
a home in rubbles, and its owners trapped underneath http://youtu.be/S11UAJgG6f4 Pulling
bodies and body parts from under the rubble http://youtu.be/y6eRJz3CBlI , http://youtu.be/hEU9IG1ZaWo , http://youtu.be/HO--c8uSKf0 , http://youtu.be/EhTIVfSs2k0 , http://youtu.be/2T1QxSjtZrk A
local school was left in ruins http://youtu.be/zLozXJJqTxI
, http://youtu.be/sbpiDJLPCpE
The pounding of Aleppo City by fighter
jets continues http://youtu.be/kzyWwQA1ud0
, http://youtu.be/fb_lb1UGnqc There
were clashes http://youtu.be/8x09se8U03w
Trying to take on a chopper http://youtu.be/3rRHbwvlAHw
But many neighborhoods remain clearly under rebel control http://youtu.be/Bt-KRhQgfe8
Rebels in Idlib are mounting a methodical campaign on tank convoys
going to Aleppo. Tank parts lie in piece along the highway http://youtu.be/xFuoXlohr1w
Inhabitants of Kafrenbel, Idlib Province, rush to save their
wounded following a round of pounding by pro-Assad militias laying siege to
their town http://youtu.be/VPk_ySxqdts
The shelling leaves many homes on fire http://youtu.be/kH69AMHjpWc
The tanks taking part in the pounding are stationed outside Kafrenbel closer to
the town of Ma’arat Al-Nouman http://youtu.be/HfyYGP4_-CE
Other nearby villages in Jabal Al-Zawiyeh were also pounded http://youtu.be/yJwfkckbSks
In Lattakia, the pounding of the village of Salma, a
summertime resort in Al-Akrda Mountain continues http://youtu.be/aX1nqo1p_Kw , http://youtu.be/Jm06nfgayhU , http://youtu.be/5OzUNK_iS74
The pounding of Talbisseh, Homs Province, continues http://youtu.be/XNaRj3ke72M , http://youtu.be/F0T9rGMoU-4 Nearby Houla
gets pounded as well http://youtu.be/udYAhS030yQ
, http://youtu.be/XSOTzMeU6Ko Rastan
is pounded as well http://youtu.be/uiYlJeKtpJM
The pounding of Zabadani, Damascus City, continues http://youtu.be/cMU_3v1NwV0 Helicopter
gunships are taking part in the pounding as well http://youtu.be/qgTTr3-hD6I
In Midan Neighborhood, Damascus City, local rebels destroy a
tank http://youtu.be/9Jsu89GY7uU
Clashes in Karnaz, Hama province, leaves several local dead http://youtu.be/hbamuCzI-LY
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