Reports coming out of various regions in Syria say that at least 20 people were killed today, including a number of soldiers loyal to Bashar Assad’s regime who were killed in fighting in the southern provinces.
10 civilians were killed in Banash, a town in the far northwest of the country, when regime soldiers and tanks attacked the town. Reports say the soldiers clashes with armed protesters upon entering the town.
The violence in the south, however, was almost entirely centered around military forces, with regime troops fighting with defectors in Daraa as well as Homs. At least seven of those slain in the south were soldiers.
The European Union responded to the latest flurry of violence by announcing a new round of sanctions on the regime, including targeting the state-owned Commercial Bank, a move they say essentially cuts off Syrian business from Europe.