Clashes Continue in Syria Despite Calls for Ceasefire

Opposition Claims 62 Killed Nationwide

The United Nations Security Council call for an immediate ceasefire and negotiations led by former UN chief Kofi Annan appear to have fallen on deaf ears in Syria, as violence continued across the nation.

Nationwide, opposition officials say 62 people, mostly civilians, were killed. They also reported that 18 Syrian government soldiers and nine members of the deserter forces were killed in clashes.

The deadliest single incident was in Idlib Province, where 10 civilians on a minibus were killed by gunmen while trying to cross the border into Turkey. The identities of the attackers were not clear in this case.

Other civilians were killed in Homs and Daraa. Syrian rebels who have taken over the town of Binesh are threatening an ‘inferno’ if the Assad regime attempts to retake it.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.