Today’s Death Toll: 117 (including 2 women and 14 children)
55 in Damascus and suburbs (12 bodies from Daraya found in Mowasa Hospital and 10 martyrs from aerial shelling in Dar Al-Asafeer)
16 in Aleppo
17 in Daraa
7 in Homs
6 in Deir Ezzor
8 in Hama
5 in Idlib
3 in Quneitra

Points of Random Shelling: 251
79 by mortar
129 by artillery
43 by missiles
14 by air bombardments (including 2 instances of use of cluster bombs)

Clashes: 136
Rebels also liberated Al-Rihanieh Military Camp and the Tishreen Dam (main supplier of electricity to Aleppo). In Damascus, Rebels repelled loyalist attempts to enter the suburb of Daraya and the towns of Eastern Ghoutah (LCC).

News

Syrian government air strike near Damascus kills 10 children: activists

Syrian rebels capture helicopter air base near the capital Damascus after fierce fighting

Special Reports

Kurd teachers debate Syria war under Assad gaze
The teachers have removed Assad’s portraits from classrooms so as not to be seen as regime collaborators, but have left up the ones in headmaster Adnan’s office, where they sit on couches at break time and chat. They allow journalists in on their discussions on the anti-regime revolt but ask to be identified only by first name and refuse to have their pictures taken.

Palestinians in Syria forced to pick sides
At least 700 Palestinians across the country have been killed since the uprising began, according to opposition groups. As the violence ramps up, the Palestinian community is being forced to choose sides, adding another unpredictable element to a murky conflict. “Some Palestinians have been part of the revolution from the beginning, and some groups have sided with the regime,” said Nadim Houry, the deputy Middle East director for Human Rights Watch. “But sometimes even when they’re not part of it, the fight comes to them.”

Rebel Oil in Syria
Syrian rebels are taking a few things into their own hands. They have captured several major oilfields, two in the country’s southeastern province of Deir al-Zour recently, and are extracting oil that is helping to support the people.

Stalemate in Syria? Army short on loyalists, rebels short on guns
The regime of Bashar al-Assad appears to be favoring long-range weapons out of fear that soldiers close to the front lines will defect.

War’s Silent Scourge: Sexual Violence Against Women
It’s one of the most disturbing horrors of the conflict in Syria: the use of sexual assault as a weapon: Ambassadors Melanne Verveer and Peter Westmacott on how to put an end to the epidemic.

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