Police Fire on Syrian Protesters as Rallies Grow
Ba'ath Party HQ Torched in Daraa
Syrian police opened fire on protesters with live rounds today, according to witnesses, as the Assad regime struggle to tamp down the growing unrest of the past several days. At least one was killed Sunday, on top of the six slain on Friday.
Friday’s killings, in the small southern town of Daraa, seem to have fueled major anger amongst the local population, and swelled rallies to several thousand. Some also set fire to the ruling Ba’ath Party’s headquarters in the town.
The Assad government sought to calm the crowds with a promise to release the 15 children detained over the past two days for involvement in protests, but with scores of other protesters in custody and a long list of demands, it seems the situation is bound to grow, as it has in so many other Middle Eastern nations.
The government also sought to prevent further anti-regime graffiti being produced, announcing a new requirement for anyone who wants to buy paint to register with the secret police. This has only added to the anger, as a chief complaint of protesters was the need to secure police permission before buying property in Syria.
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Syrian
March 20th, 2011 at 9:00 pm
These thugs in Deraa are being led and financed by foreign forces. They torch hospitals and communication centers, destroy cars and kill people, and then they say that they are peaceful and that they have a list of demands for reforms? They are lucky their town hasn't been flattened yet. Last week, a shipment of illegal weapons that was being smuggled into Syria was intercepted by the army. Tell me, would peaceful protesters need war equipment? Someone is trying to cause this trouble in Syria, as this unrest is not natural in a country where more then 90% of people support the president, and my money is on the naturally-terrorist Muslim Brotherhood and the Kurds, as well as support from Saad al-Hariri in Lebanon and the crime lords who rule Israel and the US. The Muslim Brotherhood is looking for round 2, and if they want it that bad, us Syrians are more then willing to give it to them. These people who are protesting do not represent the true will and mind of the Syrian people.