UN Resolution on Syria Fails as Death Toll Rises Precipitously

Russia and China vetoed the latest United Nations resolution that would have strengthened sanctions against Syria's Bashar al-Assad and called for him to step down comes on the same day that human rights groups decried a drastic rise in violence. More than 200 people were killed in the past 24 hours alone, though as usual, Assad claims that the death tolls were inflated and nothing more than propaganda.

Residents of Homs on Saturday described a night of ceaseless bombardment by mortars and rockets that lasted until dawn, sending them fleeing to lower floors and basements. When daylight came, dozens of buildings were left punctured by shells, facades collapsed, and some streets were stained with blood.

Thousands gathered for a funeral ceremony for some of the victims in the worst hit neighborhood, Khaldiyeh, where more than 60 coffins and bodies in white shrouds were lined up in a park, according to footage of the scene.

"A few more nights like this one and Homs will be erased from the map," Ammar, a resident, said, speaking on condition that only his first name be used for fear he and his family could be targeted. "We are being massacred."

Activists' reports of the death toll could not be independently confirmed, and the counts varied due to the confusion of tracking the dead.

The Syrian government denied any bombardment took place at all, saying the high death tolls were opposition propaganda aimed at pressuring the United Nations and the bodies were those of people who had been kidnapped previously by "terrorists."

The bloodshed added heat to negotiations that have been going on for days, as Western and Arab nations tried to overcome Russia's opposition to the resolution. The measure would have backed an Arab call for Assad to hand over his powers to his vice president and allow formation of a unity government.

Protesters have attacked Syrian embassies around the world as the death toll rises. Syrian embassies in London, Berlin, Athens, Cairo, and Kuwait were attacked - and the London embassy was actually attacked on successive nights.

The deaths in Syria coincided with the 30th anniversary of the Hama massacre by Bashar's father Hafez. Reports seem to indicate that the violence intensified when more security forces defected in Homs, and loyalists began assaulting the area where the defectors fled.

During the attack, residential buildings and homes were randomly and heavily bombed," the SNC said. An activist identified as Danny said the assault on Homs started after a few dozen members of the Syrian army defected and fled to a part of the city.

"The civilians went down to welcome (the defectors) to thank them for their bravery," Danny said, as quoted by CNN. "When the army found out, it started randomly bombarding with tank shells, mortar bombs. It's like they're killing animals."

For its part, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SABA) said the reports were part of "the ongoing distortion, falsification and instigation media campaigns by some satellite channels." "Such campaigns are viewed by many observers and analysts as a sinister bid to negatively affect the ongoing UN Security Council discussions about Syria," it added.

U.S. President Barack Obama condemned the "brutal killings" and urged the international community to protect the Syrian people. "Thirty years after his father massacred tens of thousands of innocent Syrian men, women, and children in Hama, Bashar al-Assad has demonstrated a similar disdain for human life and dignity," Obama said.

The death toll continues rising even as Russia and China both thwart any further action, no matter how limited it might be, that could bring the violence to an end and pave the way for a transition to a new regime. Neither wants to see Assad ousted, but much more immediate is the fact that Assad is using the veto to further crack down against the opposition groups.

30 Years Later, The Hama Massacre Revisited

Thirty years ago, Hafez al-Assad cracked down against the Muslim Brotherhood that had risen up to oppose Assad's dictatorship. Instead of compromise, Assad launched a full-scale military operation that all but razed the city of Hama. At least 10,000 people were killed, and some estimates put the figure as high as 25,000 or more.

That episode was recounted by Thomas Friedman in his book From Beirut to Jerusalem in the chapter called "The Hama Rules".

The rule basically goes like this: Rule by fear — strike fear in the heart of your people by letting them know that you play by no rules at all, so they won’t ever, ever, ever think about rebelling against you.

Violent and brutal crackdowns struck fear in those who might contemplate rising up to topple a regime. It worked in Syria for more than 30 years.

This past year, Friedman noted that the Hama Rules worked, until they didn't during the Arab Spring uprising against the totalitarian regimes across the Middle East and North Africa. However, Syria's Bashar al-Assad is continuing to use the rule to great effect despite the greater role of the Internet and social media to join together people opposed to the regime and to publicize the atrocities committed by the regime. Yet, Assad remains in power and continues murdering those opposed to the regime.

Syrians attempted to mark the anniversary by spraying and pouring red dye and paint on the streets to indicate all the blood shed by the Assad clan over the decades. Assad's loyalists came through with fire hoses to wash away the paint, but they can't wash away the death and misery that the Assads have imposed on the Syrian people and those who dare oppose the regime.

yrian security forces fanned out in Hama on Thursday as protesters splashed red paint symbolizing blood in the streets to mark the 30th anniversary of a notorious massacre carried out by President Bashar Assad's father and predecessor.

The Hama massacre of 1982, which leveled entire neighborhoods and killed thousands of people, has become a rallying cry for the Syrian uprising that began nearly 11 months ago in the hopes of ending four decades of the Assad family rule.

Hundreds of troops and security forces were in Hama on Thursday, closing off public squares and setting up checkpoints.

"There is a checkpoint every 100 meters," said Ahmed Jimejmi, a Hama resident.

Activists painted two streets in Hama red to symbolize blood, and threw red dye in the waters of Hama's famous and ancient water wheels.

Graffiti on the walls read: "Hafez died, and Hama didn't. Bashar will die, and Hama won't."

The death toll in the current uprising continues climbing and is closing in on at least 6,000 dead (the overwhelming majority civilians) though no one knows the true death toll. Assad's regime claims that over 2,000 killed are his security forces, though that could also be a combination of his loyalists and those defecting from his regime that the loyalists have killed.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights continues reporting on the situation inside the country, but they too are limited by what they can report.


Meanwhile the fighting continues to become more sectarian as Assad's Alawite sect is coming under increasing fire from rebel opposition groups that are fighting against the regime. The Alawites are a minority among Syrians, and have benefited from the Assad regimes such that there is likely to be lingering animosity that will carry on long after Assad is gone.

This video purportedly shows rebel groups firing on loyalists in Homs:


The fighting continues across the country, but I don't think it has gotten to the point where Assad would ever entertain exile. The National Post seems to think that the time is approaching where Assad would consider this (two countries in the Middle East are apparently prepared to give him sanctuary). Rebel groups may have held on to territory near the capital of Damascus for a short period, but the loyalists pushed them back. Had the rebels held on to the territory and made inroads inside Damascus proper, Assad may have responded with an even more violent crackdown but I don't see exile in his future.