Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Damascus the Insecure!

Assad’s grip over Damascus has become tenuous at best. Rebels are able to conduct bombings and attacks even in the most secured areas aided by informants embedded within Assad’s own security establishment. The battle of Damascus is set to begin at earnest soon, in what promises to be a very bloody development.

Tuesday September 25, 2012

Today’s Death toll: 148. The Breakdown: 44 in Damascus and suburbs, 37 in Aleppo, 25 in Deir Ezzor, 15 in Daraa, 10 in Qunaitra, 5 in Homs, 8 in Idlib, 3 in Hama, and 1 in Lattakia (LCC).

In Homs Province, the head of the Military Council of Homs, the convoy of Col. Qassim Saadeddine, came under attack from pro-Assad militias in what is believed to be a deliberate assassination attempt. Col. Saadeddine is headquartered at the town of Rastan where his troops have been keeping Assad’s militias at bay since the beginning of the armed phase of the revolution. He is highly respected by locals.

Highlights (LCC):

Deir Ezzor City: Jourah District was raided by security forces who carried out dozens of summary executions. Regime forces also shelled Qoussour District.
Damascus Suburbs: Douma came under heavy artillery shelling.
Daraa: Ankhal came under heavy artillery shelling.
Aleppo City: Kallasseh Neighborhood came under intense shelling.
Aleppo Province: warplanes targeted the town of El-Bab.

News

Special Reports
Though President Bashar Assad seems to have a grip on Damascus, it's unclear how strong it is as people go about their business behind closed doors.
If you need a measure of how desperate Syria’s refugees are, contemplate this: Many are fleeing to Iraq.
"Shabbiha" militias in Syria's most shell-shocked city used to offer fellow minority Alawites protection out of solidarity. Now, security comes at a price: About $300 a month.
Dozens of young men have left Ireland to join the Syrian and Libyan uprisings. Though most have never held a gun before, these are causes they are willing to fight and die for.
ONE OF the most troubling scenes veteran French war surgeon Jacques Beres witnessed during a recent trip to Syria was the aftermath of government shelling of a bakery queue in Aleppo, the northern city convulsed by fighting between the regime and rebels.
The Syrian government has encouraged the conflation of activism with Islamic movementto keep citizens in a state of fear and obedience.

Op-Eds
Many characterize the situation as a civil war, implying that the civilian population is caught up in a sectarian bloodbath. In fact, Syrians are paying a high price for attempting to oust the most vicious and authoritarian regime that has ever ruled their country.

Ammar Abdulhamid & Khawla Yusuf: The Shredded Tapestry: The State of Syria Today

Video Highlights

The town of Zabadani, Damascus Suburbs, continue to be pounded http://youtu.be/hVrVDAjCDgU , http://youtu.be/g-t9oaEFbEQ In Abbaddeh Suburb, MIGs take part in the pounding http://youtu.be/2BKsmoTk8IY In the suburb of Shebaa, a little girl was targeted by a sniper http://youtu.be/1XaHitb8e4Y

MIGs continue to pound Aleppo City: Maadi http://youtu.be/EvSftCShepE The nearby town of Menbij is also pounded http://youtu.be/N4h2ooN-Xxk

Warplanes drop TNT barrels on the town of Rastan in Homs Province http://youtu.be/zDpL32n0h94

Barrel bombs were also dropped over the town of Salma, in Latakia Province http://youtu.be/Fg7pWVTop74

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