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April 10th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda
Lebanon’s government, dominated by the Shia Islamist group Hizbollah which is
funded by the Assad regime, is unlikely to protest too vigorously, although
the incident could prove destabilising in a country whose Sunni and
Christian populations deeply resent Syrian influence.
Turkey, however, will prove much less malleable. One of the Assad regime’s
most implacable critics in the region, it has been vocal in its scepticism
of a peace plan brokered by Kofi Annan, the UN and Arab League special envoy
to Syria, that is meant to reach fruition this week.
Under the terms of the initiative, the Syrian government is meant to withdraw
its troops and heavy weapons from cities and towns by today, with the rebels
required to end all attacks when a full ceasefire is supposed to come into
force 48 hours later.
But ever since Mr Annan announced that Syria had accepted the peace plan last
Monday, the country has been convulsed by some of its worst bloodshed since
the uprising against Mr Assad began a year ago.
Hundreds of people, mostly civilians but also soldiers and rebels, have been
reportedly killed as government offensives launched a countrywide offensive
to reclaim opposition-held territory.
More than 50 people were killed yesterday, opposition human rights groups
said, including 30 civilians in an army artillery assault on al-Latmana, a
town in the central province of Hama. Syrian helicopter gunships also
attacked a nearby village.
A dozen soldiers were also killed in rebel attacks elsewhere in the country.
The violence of the past week has prompted a surge in the number of refugees
fleeing into Turkey, which houses 25,000 Syrians in camps close to the
border.
With a further 200,000 civilians displaced within Syria itself, Turkey fears
the number of refugees will grow sharply despite the efforts of Mr Assad’s
troops to mine the borders.
In response to Turkish warnings that it will soon need international
assistance, Mr Annan is due to tour some of the refugee camps today.
Turkey’s deputy foreign minister, Naci Koru, said the visit would be used to
make the point that the peace plan was effectively dead.
“April 10 has become void,” Mr Koru said. “After Kofi Annan’s
visit tomorrow a new stage will start.”
Turkey, which already provides sanctuary to rebel units, has previously
proposed mounting a cross-border military incursion into Syria to create a
buffer zone but so far has failed to win American support for the idea.
But what little leeway Mr Assad had with his Western detractors is dissipating
fast after his government on Sunday backed away from its commitment to
withdraw troops by Tuesday’s deadline, saying it would only do so if it
received a written pledge from the rebels that they would also disarm.
“Adding new conditions at this stage is totally unacceptable,”
Baroness Ashton, the European Union policy chief, said.
In a damning indictment that will reinforce Western outrage with the regime,
Human Rights Watch said yesterday that it had documented the summary
executions by pro-regime forces of at least 85 civilians, including women
and children, and 16 captured rebel fighters since late 2011. The group said
it believed hundreds more executions had also taken place.
“In a desperate attempt to crush the uprising, Syrian forces have
executed people in cold blood, civilians and opposition fighters alike,”
said Ole Solvang, a researcher for the group. “They are doing it in
broad daylight and in front of witnesses, evidently not concerned about any
accountability for their crimes.”
Amateur video footage released by opposition activists in Homs showed a man
being kicked and beaten by suspected loyalist militiamen who set fire to his
back before slicing open his throat with a knife. The provenance of the clip
is unclear and its authenticity could not be established.
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