“This appalling and brutal crime, involving indiscriminate and disproportionate use of force, is a flagrant violation of international law and of the commitments of the Syrian government to cease the use of heavy weapons in population centres and violence in all its forms.”
![Syria suffers worst terror attack since start of uprising
Syria suffered its worst terrorist attack since the start of the uprising when 55 people were reported killed and nearly 400 injured in twin suicide car bomb blasts near a government intelligence building in Damascus.
Syrian officials and media blamed foreign-backed terrorist groups for the attack on Thursday, saying it was carried out “in the service of the interests of Israel and its allies in the region”. Russia hinted that other unnamed countries were involved.
The opposition accused the regime of President Bashar al-Assad of carrying out the bombings to smear them as terrorists supported by foreign governments. [pic: SANA/Reuters]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3tovbG0za1qakqyfo1_1280.jpg)
Syria suffers worst terror attack since start of uprising
Syria suffered its worst terrorist attack since the start of the uprising when 55 people were reported killed and nearly 400 injured in twin suicide car bomb blasts near a government intelligence building in Damascus.
Syrian officials and media blamed foreign-backed terrorist groups for the attack on Thursday, saying it was carried out “in the service of the interests of Israel and its allies in the region”. Russia hinted that other unnamed countries were involved.
The opposition accused the regime of President Bashar al-Assad of carrying out the bombings to smear them as terrorists supported by foreign governments. [pic: SANA/Reuters]
“After our armed forces completed successful operations in combating the criminal acts of the armed terrorist groups and enforced the state’s rule over its territory, it has been decided to stop these operations from Thursday morning.”
“Despite the Syrian government’s acceptance of the joint special envoy’s [Kofi Annan’s] plan of initial proposals to resolve the crisis, the violence and assaults in civilian areas have not stopped. The situation on the ground continues to deteriorate.”
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Thursday that violence against civilians had not stopped and the year-long conflict was getting worse. Fierce clashes have been reported between Syrian government forces and opposition fighters in Douma, near the capital Damascus, and in other parts of the country, amid doubts over the government’s declared commitment to meeting an imminent ceasefire deadline. (source)
Picture: Giorgos Moutafis/AFP/Getty Images
Barcelona, Spain: A young demonstrator wearing a Syrian flag looks up to his balloon during in a protest in solidarity with the Syrian people. (via)
Women and Children reportedly clubbed, stabbed to death in Syrian massacre
The fighting in Syria has taken an especially brutal turn as some 47 people, all women and children, have been reported killed in a massacre in the opposition stronghold of Homs, just as the U.N. envoy Kofi Annan said negotiations were on the “right track” to stop the slaughter. The bodies showed signs of incredible brutality, and both sides are blaming the other for the atrocity. Sky News and the Telegraph both reported the bodies of 26 women and 21 children had been found with stab wounds, some with their throats cut.
Gallery: Inside the Syria revolt
Despite a clampdown on journalists, some pictures from Syria are getting out. They show bombed buildings, dead bodies, graves and a suffering people. Above are some recent photographs. We’ll update with new information regularly.
“I, Abdo Hussameldin, deputy oil and mineral wealth minister in Syria, announce my defection from the regime, resignation from my position and withdrawal from the Baath Party. I join the revolution of this dignified people.”
Abdo Hussameldin, a deputy in Syria’s oil ministry, has announced his defection in a video posted by activists on YouTube.
If confirmed, Hussameldin would be the highest-ranking civilian official to abandon President Bashar al-Assad’s government since the uprising against his rule erupted a year ago.
“No government, no authority, under no circumstances, can endorse such a total massacre of its own people. The international community must speak louder. The lack of international consensus is giving Syria the courage to continue.”
Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu has called the violence in Syria “a crime against humanity” on the scale of the 1990s bloodshed in the Balkans, as a Red Cross convoy was once again barred from entering the Homs suburb of Baba Amr. (Source)
As the Syria crisis spirals, the last remaining international support for President Assad appears to be melting away.
Exactly how bad have things got? The United Nations reports over 8,700 deaths by the end of February in the updated infographic above - available from Reliefweb - which covers deaths by region. (Via the Guardian DataBlog)
“There are credible reports that the death toll now often exceeds 100 civilians a day, including many women and children. The total killed so far is certainly well over 7,500 people.”
More than 7,500 people have died in Syria since security forces launched a crackdown on dissent last March, Under-Secretary-General for political affairs Lynn Pascoe said after a meeting of the UN Security Council. (source)
“If the regime fails to accept the terms of the political initiative outlined by the Arab League and end violence against citizens, the Friends of Syria should not constrain individual countries from aiding the Syrian opposition by means of military advisers, training and provision of arms to defend themselves.”
The main Syrian opposition group has asked for rebel fighters to be allowed to import weapons. The plea came at a major international “Friends of Syria” conference being held in Tunisia to seek a breakthrough in the increasingly bitter conflict.
A declaration is expected later, calling on Syrian forces to declare a ceasefire and allow humanitarian access to the worst-hit areas. (source)
Feb. 6, 2012. A Syrian man hugs his seriously wounded brother in a house used as a hospital in Bab Amr, a southern neighborhood of Homs.
Syria is no longer sliding into war or staring at the abyss of warfare. Syria is at war. On assignment for TIME this week, photographer Alessio Romenzi risked his life documenting civilian casualties in Bab Amr, a district in the besieged city of Homs.
See more here.
![reuters:
This Reuters graphic shows there have been 6,519 men, 190 women and 465 children killed in violence in Syria as of Feb. 5, 2012. The most fatalities in a single day since April of last year happened on Feb. 4, 2012 with 400 deaths reported.
The latest on Syria | Follow Reuters on Tumblr
[Graphic: REUTERS | Sources: UNITAR-UNOSAT, Syria Violence Document Center, syrianshuhada.com, syriamap.wordpress.com, news reports]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lz17ldzGvr1qmaoalo1_500.jpg)
This Reuters graphic shows there have been 6,519 men, 190 women and 465 children killed in violence in Syria as of Feb. 5, 2012. The most fatalities in a single day since April of last year happened on Feb. 4, 2012 with 400 deaths reported.
The latest on Syria | Follow Reuters on Tumblr
[Graphic: REUTERS | Sources: UNITAR-UNOSAT, Syria Violence Document Center, syrianshuhada.com, syriamap.wordpress.com, news reports]
