Security Forces Kill Fifteen After Agreement to Halt Protester Violence

By Carolyn Abdenour
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria – On Friday, 4 November, Syrian security forces killed at least fifteen people after Friday prayers.  To prevent demonstrations, the security forces surrounded mosques and used gunfire throughout Syria.  The demonstrators gathered to challenge the promise the government made to the Arab League on Wednesday to halt intense confrontations with demonstrators.

Protest in Homs on Friday. (Photo Courtesy of Al Jazeera)

Syrian-based human rights lawyer Mustafa Osso commented, “This regime is not serious about ending its brutal crackdown. . . .  Today was a real test for the intentions of the regime and the answer is clear to everyone who wants to see.”

At Abu Bakr mosque in Baniays, security forces assaulted people as they exited the mosque and trapped hundreds inside to block protests.  The Local Coordinating Committees (“LCC”), a body that assists in organizing protests, reported government snipers observed demonstrations in Hasakeh and Hama from commercial markets and mosques.  The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented forces using gunfire in Deir Ezzor and explosives in a Daraa neighborhood.  Forces also showed a presence near the Fattahi mosque in Lattakia.  In Bab Amro, forces prevented ambulances from accessing the area where launch and shell attacks continued.  In Homs, medics report over 100 bodies arrived in the past 48 hours after tanks shelled parts of the city.

Meanwhile, SANA, Syria’s official news agency, noted engineers dismantled two two-remote controlled bombs in Deir Ezzor.  Thirteen soldiers and police also died in Hama, Homs, and Idlib fighting armed terrorist groups.

Syria’s Interior Minister announced on Friday a one-week amnesty period for “citizens who carried weapons, sold them, delivered them, transported them or funded buying them, and did not commit crimes.”  Citizens who handed themselves into the nearest police station would be freed immediately as a part of the general amnesty.

Journalists face difficulty confirming the violence on the ground because the government has limited foreign journalist activity and independent reporting.  They must rely on witness accounts, amateur videos posted online, and information gathered by activist groups.

On Wednesday, the Arab League announced at an emergency meeting that Syria agreed to release political prisoners, remove tanks and armored vehicles from the cities, and cease violence towards protesters.  Moreover, Syria also agreed to permit Arab League representatives, journalists, and human rights groups to monitor the situation.  The agreement emphasized “the need for the immediate, full and exact implementation.”

If the government abides by the Arab League agreement, groups such as the Free Syrian Army committed to follow the agreement.  If the government derogates from the agreement, the group stated, “We will be compelled to protect the protesters and work on bringing down the regime no matter how much that will cost us.”

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – ‘Deadly Clashes’ Continue in Syria – 4 November 2011

BBC – Syria: Homs Military Attacks Continue, Say Activists – 4 November 2011

Boston Globe – Syrian Troops Fire During Protests; 9 Killed – 4 November 2011

CNN – 15 Civilians Killed in Latest Syrian Clashes, Activist Group Says – 4 November 2011

Author: Impunity Watch Archive