Syrian army invades Baba Amr, 17 civilians beheaded by security forces
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The Syrian army entered Baba Amr today in full force, leaving carnage in its wake. Early this afternoon, Avaaz connected to sources inside the besieged neighbourhood for the first time since 22:45 last night. A key FSA source from inside the district told Avaaz “hundreds of bodies” of the dead and injured were lying in the rubble of shelled houses and in the street. He added that women and children attempting to flee Baba Amr to neighbouring Sultaniya last night were trapped by regime shelling, and many were killed.
Alice Jay Campaign Director for Avaaz said: “Government forces are on the ground in Baba Amr. There are bodies on the street. Residents have never been more desperate: there is no food, no medicine and civilians are melting snow for drinking water. It is shameful that the international community has not acted to prevent this disaster. They promised to put aid on the border. Where are the trucks?”
Families beheaded by security forces
This morning 17 civilians were beheaded or partially beheaded by regime security forces in the farming area on the outskirts Baba Amr. Avaaz has verified all 17 names. Six of those slaughtered were from the Sabouh family.
Yesterday, an entire family of five was killed at the Gardenia checkpoint outside the Homs neighbourhood of al-Waer. Some members of the family were beheaded. Avaaz citizen journalist ‘Waleed’ reported: “At least 3 families have been slaughtered in the same manner, some beheaded, in the past 48 hours. The Hamsa family, the Shbat family and the Bihlaq family have been slaughtered over the course of two days.”
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Published: March 1, 2012
BEIRUT, Lebanon — The Syrian Army overwhelmed the main rebel stronghold in the embattled city of Homs on Thursday, setting the stage for its elite soldiers to turn their attention — and superior firepower — to other insurgent redoubts farther north, despite the increasing international pressure for a cease-fire and humanitarian access.
In announcing their “tactical withdrawal” from the Baba Amr neighborhood in Homs after enduring a pounding by artillery, tank and sniper fire for nearly a month, the rebel Revolutionary Brigades of Baba Amr said in statement that they were both heavily outgunned and unable to justify keeping thousands of civilians marooned under dire humanitarian conditions. In a quarter where most buildings are pockmarked by shell blasts, residents lack food, medicine, water, electricity and were cut off from the outside world.
The rebel retreat was a significant victory for President Bashar al-Assad, as his troops hurry to put down an armed insurgency before international pressure grows so great, or the cohesion of the armed forces breaks down, under the relentless pressure of a nearly year-old uprising. The Syrian government lacks sufficient elite troops to subdue all rebellious cities at once, hence its strategy has been to stall for enough time to regain control of one hotspot at a time while pushing its own proposals for limited political change.
But it remains a race against exhaustion, defections and diminished resources.
More: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/02/world/middleeast/rebels-resisting-onslaught-in-syrian-city-activists-say.html?_r=1&hp
