Nearly 400 Reported Killed in Deadly Day in Syria

Source : RIA Novosti

MOSCOW, December 30 (RIA Novosti) – At least 397 people were killed in Syria on Saturday in what could be the country’s bloodiest day since the start of the uprising 21 months ago, the opposition Local Coordination Committees (LCC) claimed on Sunday.

“By the end of Saturday the LCC managed to document 397 martyrs (including more than 20 children and 20 women),” the activist group reported on its website.

The LLC makes a daily death toll count in the Syrian conflict on its website.

The figure includes 220 people who were “field executed in Deir Balbah” outside the city of Homs after the Syrian forces regained the area, the LCC said.

According to CNN, the activist group has learned about the Deir Balbah massacre from captured soldiers of the Syrian government troops.

The Syrian government has not commented on the alleged mass executions at Deir Balbah while the Syrian state TV showed images of dead bodies and seized weapons in the city’s tunnels it claimed were being used by "terrorists.”

Between 20,000 and 37,000 Syrians, by various estimates, have been killed in the 21-month-long conflict between government forces and the opposition, which comprises groups of all stripes, from Communists and secular liberals to Islamist groups, including Al-Qaeda.

Western powers have insisted on President Bashar al-Assad’s departure before the formation of a new government of national unity while Russia insisted that the decision be left to the “Syrian people.”

Gaza man killed in Syria was 'Qassam commander'

Source : Maan News Agency

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A Palestinian man who was killed in Syria on Friday was a senior figure in Hamas' armed wing, rebels and Hamas officials said Saturday.

Muhammad Qunneita, 31, from Shati refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, had been in Syria for four months, his brother told Ma'an.

Rebels told Reuters on Saturday Qunneita was killed in fighting around Aleppo airport where he had been helping to train Arab and Muslim fighters. Activists in Syria also said he had been a prominent figure in Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades.

After Qunneita died on Friday, Hamas-affiliated news site Palestine Now described him as a Al-Qassam field commander, quoting a military official in Gaza.

He had trained several rebel brigades during his time in Syria, and was fatally wounded during the storming of Idlib airport on Thursday, the report said.

But a Hamas source in Gaza told Reuters Qunneita had left the Hamas brigade and joined a jihadi group before leaving for Syria to fight there.

The exiled leadership of Hamas was based in Damascus until earlier this year, when officials from the Sunni Islamist movement, which sympathizes with the uprising against Assad, quietly pulled out.

Airlines suspend flights to Damascus due to security concerns

Source : Xinhua | English.news.cn

CAIRO, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- Egypt's EgyptAir and UAE's Dubai- based Emirates Airlines have cancelled their flights to the Syrian capital of Damascus on Friday due to security concerns.

"Emirates has, with immediate effect, suspended its daily EK913 and EK914 services to/from Damascus until further notice," Emirates Airlines said on its website, without elaborating reasons.

The Dubai-based carrier, however, added in the statement that " the safety of our passengers and crew is of the highest priority and will not be compromised," prompting speculations that security situation around Damascus airport may be deteriorating.

A spokesperson of EgyptAir also told media that the carrier has cancelled its flights to Damascus on Friday.

On Thursday, Syrian government troops and opposition forces engaged in clashes near Damascus, cutting off the road to Damascus airport. Also on Thursday afternoon, most Internet and cell phone services in Syria were cut off.

"In the global routing table, all 84 of Syria's IP address blocks have become unreachable, effectively removing the country from the Internet," U.S. company Renesys, which was monitoring Syria's web traffic, said on its website.

According to Syrian activists, Syrian government often cuts Internet and phone services before launching major military operations, which on Thursday prompted speculations of imminent offensives by government troops.

Earlier on Thursday, an explosive device went off near the house of a leading member of Syria's ruling al-Baath party in the southern province of Daraa, killing three policemen and injuring others. The explosive device, weighing 50 kg, went off in front of the house of a secretary of al-Baath party in Daraa, causing damage to nearby buildings.

On Wednesday, a car bomb rattled the Busra town on the countryside of Daraa and killed two people.

Recently, the fighting has intensified between government troops and Western-backed rebels who are trying to erode Syrian government's grip on the capital and elsewhere in Syria in the hope of hastening the collapse of the Syrian administration.

30 rebels, 10 gov't troops killed in fresh wave of violence

Source : Xinhua | English.news.cn

DAMASCUS, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- As many as 30 armed men were killed Wednesday in Syria's eastern province of Deir al-Zour during clashes with government troops, a pro-government media reported, as sources said that a total of 10 government forces were also killed Wednesday in a roadside bomb blast in the northwestern province of Idlib.

The armed men were killed during clashes with the Syrian forces near al-Rawda mosque in the town of Jubaila in Deir al-Zour, Sham FM radio said.

Separately, the state-run SANA news agency said scores of " terrorists" had been killed during a qualitative operation carried out by the Syrian army against their gatherings at the orchards of the Damascus suburb of Daraya.

It added that the army has liberated tens of people, including children and women, who were kidnapped and besieged in Daraya by the terrorists to use them as human shield.

SANA said also that the army has seized a makeshift factory to make bombs and a tunnel to store weapons and ammunition in the area.

In the northern province of Idilb, Sham FM said a roadside bomb went off on the Idlib-Mastouma road, killing and injuring unidentified number of people. The reports stopped short of providing further details. However, a source said that the roadside bomb went off near an overnight military bus and killed 10 soldiers.

On the opposition side, activists said that an explosive device went off on Wednesday evening near a coffee shop in al-Zahera district of the capital Damascus, causing material damages.

Activists said that coffee shop is always occupied by security forces and pro-government gunmen.

The Local Coordination Committees (LCC), activists' network, placed the death toll of Wednesday's violence at 95 and blamed the ongoing violence in the courtly solely on the Syrian administration.

The LCC also reported the shelling by government troops, and in some cases aerial bombardment, on a number of hotspots nationwide, including suburbs in Damascus, such as Daraya and Hajar al- Aswad among others.

Still, the activists' account couldn't be checked independently.

Tensions in Syria began in March, 2011, when protesters took to the streets to call for the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad. The situation has since escalated and Syrian security forces have been accused of firing on innocent protesters. The situation has evolved into an ugly conflict with no foreseeable solution.

More than 20,000 people, mostly civilians, have reportedly died in Syria since the country's crisis began some 20 months ago. A further 2.5 million Syrians urgently need humanitarian aid, and over 340,000 have crossed the border to Syria's neighboring countries -- Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq, according to UN estimates.

Haidar: Dialogue is the Only Way out of Crisis in Syria

Source : SANA, Syria

AMASCUS, (SANA) - Minister of State for National Reconciliation Affairs Dr. Ali Haidar said that the dialogue is the only way out of the crisis in Syria.

In an interview on the Syrian TV late Tuesday, Minister Haidar noted that the Syrian National Dialogue Conference held in Tehran is a strong step in the right direction, adding that the crisis in Syria affected all life's aspects of the Syrian people, especially in the fields of Education, Culture, Media and Health.

He added that "Launching dialogue will help increase the number of persons and sides who want to participate and eventually will help confront extremist persons and sides who are carrying weapons. Sitting at the dialogue table requires more courage than carrying weapons."

He stressed that the persons who are coming from all around the world to fight in Syria don't care about the Syrians or about building a strong and stable country, adding that those persons have other project that should be confronted.

Minister Haidar highlighted that the Syrians will not be drawn into civil war despite all practices and acts committed by some sides, adding that the Syrian culture is a non-sectarian culture.

He said that Tehran's conference rejected all forms of wars or interference in Syria, adding that there is a media war waged by some countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, who are US tools in the Middle East region against Syria.

On the Israeli aggression on Gaza, Haidar said that the Israeli aggression targets all Palestine, stressing that the resistance- supporting countries should provide all possible support for the resistance's fighters in Gaza, who represent all the Palestinian people.

Syrian Army kills scores of militants in Edlib

The Syrian Army forces have hit positions for the Free Army militia in several areas of Edlib province, killing 38 militant and injuring others.

Three civilians got killed when targeting their bus by terrorists, using an explosive charge on Kafartakharim road, what resulted in 3 martyrs.

Our correspondent said that the Syrian Army destroyed a position for the gunmen near Harem town hall, which resulted in the death of 15 armed men, including their leader Hadi Ramadan.

The reporter added that the leader in Free Army militia Ammar al-Wawi, [might] have been killed.

Our correspondent also added that the Syrian Army attacked positions for the insurgents of Free Army militia in Mahambal and Sallet al-Zuhour villages, that is situated in Jeser al-Shughour

Exclusive sources said to Breaking News Network that the Syrian Army targeted positions for the insurgents in Sarmeen town, what resulted in the death of many gunmen.

Booby-trapped car goes off in restive Damascus' district

Source : Xinhua | English.news.cn

DAMASCUS, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- An explosive-laden car went off in the district of Tadamun in the Syrian capital Damascus on Saturday, a pro-government TV said, adding that the local committees in the district succeeded in rounding up the person who detonated it.

Tadamun has been witnessing intense fighting between the government troops and the armed militias over the past several months. The local committees, set up by government forces, are also involved in the fighting against the rebels.

There has been no immediate word on casualties.

Meanwhile, the state-run SANA news agency said that three car bombs went off in the southern province of Daraa earlier in the day, killing at least seven people and causing huge material damages.

Quoting an official source, SANA said the first car bomb rocked the crowded al-Mubailat street, while the second one rattled the Panorama roundabout and the third one tore through the Finance Directorate in Daraa, causing big damages to the building and nearby ones as well.

SANA added that the third car bomb was rigged with large amounts of anti-tank mines, some of which did not go off during the blast.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claimed that the Daraa explosions killed scores of government soldiers. Yet, such claim is impossible of being verified.

Separately, a Syrian army unit blasted a boat used by " terrorists" in Euphrates River in eastern Deir al-Zour province on Saturday, killing six armed men.

Violence in Syria keeps escalating amid more overt presence of foreign Jihadists who are fighting the government troops.

At Friday meeting in #Doha : #SNC elects new leftist head (G. Sabra)

Syrian opposition await final say on unity proposal after SNC elects new head - Xinhua | English.news.cn

DOHA/Damascus, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- Exiled Syrian opposition groups convening in the Qatari capital Doha are expected to announce within hours their final decision on a proposal to form a unity opposition front, after the major opposition bloc the Syrian National Council (SNC) elected its new head on Friday.

At a Friday meeting in Doha, the SNC elected George Sabra out of two candidates as the new chairman of its executive board.

Sabra, a Christian born in 1947 in Syria's Damascus, will succeed Abdel Baset Seda, who took over the SNC presidency in June.

Sabra was arrested in July 2011 for "undermining the morale of the state and inciting people to demonstrate against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad," but was released two months later and joined the SNC general secretariat.

The SNC and some other exiled opposition groups have been meeting in Doha for days to discuss forming a wider opposition body that could be the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people in case of the current Syrian government's downfall.

The proposal, titled Syrian National Initiative, calls for establishing a united opposition front to help end the 20-month Syrian crisis and forming a transitional government headed by Riad Seif, a prominent Syrian dissident and former member of the parliament.

The groups were expected to announce their final decision on the proposal on Friday, but the SNC requested a 24-hour delay of the announcement, citing its "electoral process."

Turkish new agency Anatolia reported Friday that most of the opposition parties at the Doha meeting have agreed on the proposal and are waiting for the final say of the SNC.

The SNC has shown reluctance towards the U.S.-backed proposal, for concerns that its influence will be weakened if a broader opposition body is established.

Some SNC members, particularly those from the Muslim Brotherhood, cling fast to the idea that the SNC is the only legitimate representative for the Syrian opposition.

However, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said recently that the SNC had failed to effectively represent the diverse opposition groups.

According to the proposal, the broader body would include 35 members, with 10 from the SNC, 10 from the anti-government movement inside Syria, 10 from the opposition military forces, and five independent personalities.

4 blasts rock district of Syrian capital

4 blasts rock district of Syrian capital - Xinhua | English.news.cn

English.news.cn 2012-11-07 12:55:22

DAMASCUS, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- Four blasts rocked the al-Mazzeh 86district in Damascus early Wednesday, followed by sporadic gunfire, witnesses and local media said.

The loud explosions rattled the sprawling district and caused billowing dark smoke.

The pro-government al-Ekhbaria TV speculated that the blasts were caused by mortar shells fired at the district. More details were still emerging.

The neighborhood is dominated by people from the Alawitte minority, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, to which President Bashar al-Assad and the ruling elite belong.

The area was hit a couple of days ago by the blast of a booby-trapped car that killed at least 11 people.

On Tuesday, 15 people were killed by a spate of blasts that battered al- Wurud Square in the Damascus suburb of Qudsiah, another Alawitte dominated area.

Six civilians killed by armed militias in northern Syria

Source : Xinhua | English.news.cn

DAMASCUS, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- At least six civilians were killed Monday when armed militias fired 11 mortar shells on an anti- militia protest in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo, the state-run SANA news agency said.

The armed groups fired the mortars to put down the protest that erupted in Bustan al-Qaser district expressing rejection to the presence of the militias in the area, said SANA.

Aleppo has been battered with violence since months ago after the rebels announced their goal to seize control of the crucial province in a bid to create a de facto capital akin to Libya's Benghazi. The Libyan city had been used by the rebels as their base during the Libyan civil war that toppled long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi.

More than 20,000 Syrians, mostly civilians, have reportedly died since the Syrian crisis started some 20 months ago. About 2.5 million Syrians are in urgent need of humanitarian aid and over 340,000 have crossed border into Syria's neighbors such as Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq, according to UN estimates.

Exlposion hits behind Dama Rose Hotel Damscus ...many injured

شبكة عاجل الإخبارية

An explosive charge has detonated in the second floor in the building of Workers Union, behind Dama Rose hotel in Damascus.

Our correspondent confirmed that the explosion resulted in several injuries, including serious cases, and large material damages.

Al-Arabia TV said that the brigade of Ahfad al-Rasoul claimed responsibility for committing the crime in Damascus.

3 Syrian tanks enter Golan demilitarized zone

Source : Xinhua | English.news.cn

JERUSALEM, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- Three Syrian tanks entered the demilitarized zone (DMZ) in the Golan Heights on the Israel-Syrian border, prompting the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to raise the alert level in this area, the IDF spokesman's office told Xinhua Saturday.

The Syrian tanks proceeded into a village located a few kilometers from an IDF outpost, a move believed related to the internal conflict in the country.

Israel has complained to the United Nations peacekeeping force in the area after the Syrian tanks were deployed in the area, an IDF spokesperson confirmed to Xinhua.

Israeli media reported that there were also two Syrian armored personnel carriers that had entered the zone.

Over the past 24 hours some mortar shells were fired into the DMZ, one of which caused a fire near the Israel-Syria border, according to the reports.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed it later, an act not recognized by the international community. The DMZ was created after the 1973 war in which Syria tried to retake the strategic plateau.

Syria Newsfeed ∫ 31. Oct. 2012

Source : Egypt Independent

Syrian air force on offensive after failed truce

Syrian warplanes bombed rebel targets with renewed intensity on Tuesday after the end of a widely ignored four-day truce between President Bashar al-Assad's forces and insurgents.

______________________________________

Source : The Daily Star

Syria warplanes strike eastern belt of Damascus: activists

BEIRUT: Warplanes pummelled rebel positions across the eastern suburbs of Damascus on Wednesday, after a day of clashes and air strikes killed at least 182 people in Syria, a watchdog said.

"Warplanes carried out five air raids on the farmlands around the towns of Saqba and Douma and smoke was seen rising from the targeted areas" east of Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

______________________________________

Via : The Daily Star
Source : Agence France Presse

Envoy urges China to play 'active role' in Syria crisis

BEIJING: UN- Arab League peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said Wednesday he hoped China would play an active role in helping end the violence in Syria as he met Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi for talks in Beijing.

Greeting Yang at the foreign ministry in front of reporters, Brahimi said he hoped "China can play an active role in solving the events in Syria" without elaborating further.

China is generally suspicious of intervention in the internal affairs of other nations.

Both China and Russia have exercised their veto in the UN Security Council to block resolutions aimed at putting more pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

State television said "terrorists" had assassinated an air force general, Abdullah Mahmoud al-Khalidi, in a Damascus suburb, the latest of several rebel attacks on senior officials.

U.N. envoy Brahimi meets Assad and urges unilateral ceasefires

Source : Alarabiya.net Mobile

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad received on Sunday peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, who is pressing both sides in Syria\'s conflict for a truce during a Muslim holiday this week. (Reuters)

International mediator Lakhdar Brahim met Syrian President Bashar al- Assad in Damascus on Sunday as he sought to press both sides in Syria's conflict for a truce during a Muslim holiday this week.

During the meeting, Brahimi urged two sides in Syria conflict to declare unilateral ceasefires.

“I appeal to everyone to take a unilateral decision to cease hostilities on the occasion of Eid al-Adha (starting Friday) and that this truce be respected from today or tomorrow,” Brahimi told reporters.

The U.N.-Arab League envoy held talks with Assad in Damascus.

Brahimi, the joint U.N.-Arab League special envoy for the Syria crisis, has been criss-crossing the region with the aim of convincing Assad's main backers and his foes to support the idea of a truce during the holiday, which starts at dusk on Thursday.

He held talks on Saturday with Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al- Moualem, which the ministry described as “constructive and serious.”

Syria has so far given a guarded response to Brahimi's ceasefire proposal, suggesting it wants guarantees that rebels would reciprocate any move by Assad's forces.

Car bomb in Damascus, several killed: TV

Source : yahoo.com

AMMAN (Reuters) - A car bomb exploded near a police station in the central Bab Touma district of Damascus on Sunday, witnesses said, and state television said several people were killed.

Ambulances sped to the site and security forces cut off access to the area. Several cars were burnt, the witnesses said.

The explosion took place as President Bashar al-Assad was meeting international envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, who has called for a temporary truce in Syria's civil war.

Damascus residents said Assad's forces shelled several districts on the edge of the Syrian capital overnight. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors violence across the country, said 140 people were killed in Syria on Saturday.

(Reporting by Khaled Yacoub Oweis; Editing by Dominic Evans and Janet Lawrence)

Blast hits the Syrian French Hospital in Aleppo

Source : Breaking News Syria

In the flashpoint city of Aleppo, on 21-10-2012, in dawn, a car bomb went off near the Syrian French Hospital, situated in Saurian neighborhood of Aleppo.

The correspondent of Breaking News Network has reported that a suicide bomber has detonated the car bomb, in which he was inside.

The blast resulted in deaths and huge damages in the hospital.

The dead people and wounded ones were even from the hospital staff, visitors or patients who were in the Syrian French Hospital.

Annan says Iran will support democratic solution to Syria crisis

Source : Tehran Times

TEHRAN - Former UN secretary general Kofi Annan said on Thursday that Iran has told him that it would support a democratic solution to the Syria crisis.

Annan, who served until August as the UN-Arab League special envoy on Syria, said that he sensed support for a democratic solution in Syria when he visited Tehran in July and met with three top Iranian officials, including President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, AFP reported.

“They all had the same message when I pushed them – that… we accept that Assad may have to go, but the Syrian people should be allowed to decide through elections, even if it’s organized under UN authority,” Annan said.

“One choice phrase they gave me is that ‘democracy is a solution, democracy is the answer in Syria,’” Annan said at the Brookings Institution, a think tank.

President Ahmadinejad said on Wednesday that Iran believes free elections are the right way to help resolve the 19-month-old conflict in Syria.

“Anyone who is the friend of the Syrian people should try to form the basis for free elections in the country,” Ahmadinejad told reporters after an Asian summit in Kuwait.

Annan says Iran backs democratic elections in Bahrain

Annan also stated that the Iranian leaders did not limit calls for democracy to Syria but also made clear they would push for a similar path in Bahrain.

Foreign weapons fueling conflict in Syria

Annan renewed his call for a peaceful solution to the crisis and warned that foreign weapons were only fueling a conflict said to have claimed more than 34,000 lives.

Iran has denied U.S. charges that it has shipped arms to Syria.

The United States has said that it is only providing non-lethal support to Syria’s opposition but Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been widely reported to have sent weapons to rebels.

Annan denounced arms shipments, saying that Syria was “almost into a sectarian war” that could spread beyond the region.

“I have said in the past that Syria, unlike Libya, will not implode but is likely to explode -- and explode beyond its borders,” Annan said.

“Some governments have made the calculation that the fastest way to end the conflict in Syria is to arm one side or the other to have total victory over the other side,” he said.

“It’s not going to happen. They’re only going to get more people killed,” he said.

Syria Discloses List of Foreign Prisoners

Source : Novosti

Syria has handed the United Nations a list of 108 foreign citizens arrested by the Syrian authorities over their alleged involvement in terrorism.

Syrian Permanent Ambassador to the UN Bashar Jaafari sent the list and a letter, dated October 18, to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- Moon and Security Council Chairman Gert Rosenthal.

“The list explains the reasons behind each individual’s arrest in connection with their involvement in terrorism in Syria,” read the letter, which was made available to journalists late Friday.

The regime of Syrian President Bashar al- Assad has sought to portray the ongoing civil war in the country as a battle between pro- government forces and shadowy Islamic militant and terrorist groups.

The violent conflict between the Syrian government and opposition forces has raged since March 2011. The fighting has claimed more than 30,000 lives, according to the UN.

Armed groups blast oil pipeline in eastern Syria

Source : English.news.cn

Armed groups blast oil pipeline in eastern Syria

(Xinhua) -- Armed groups blasted Thursday an oil pipeline in Syria's eastern province of Deir al-Zour, the state TV said.

The pipe was blasted at al-Mraieh countryside of Deir al-Zour, the TV said, giving no further details.

Meanwhile, the pro-government Sham FM radio said scores of armed men were killed during clashes with the Syrian troops in Deir al-Zour on Thursday.

Dozens of oil pipelines have been either blasted or sabotaged during Syria's 19-month-old crisi with both conflicting parties exchanging accusations for the deteriorating situation.

Syrian officials said the damage befalling the energy sector are estimated at millions of U.S. dollars.

KSA, Qatar clash over Syria… Salafists VS Muslim Brotherhood

Source : Breaking News Syria

French newspaper of the Lé Figaro has revealed in a report published on its page that a clash has been fired out between Qatar and Saudi Arabia to control on the militants in Syria.

The Newspaper indicted that Saud Royal family have been directing fund and arms to Salafists, whereas Al-Thani of Qatar have been supporting the armed groups of Muslim brotherhood.

Isam, a leader of an armed group in Damascus countryside has been quoted by the newspaper as saying “a dispute has occurred in early past September in the operations headquarter, which is located in Adana of Turkey.”

Isam added, “Representatives for the royal king of Saudi Arabia and the Qatari prince, who both work under the supervision of Turkey, have disputed over where to direct their fund and support; for the Salafists or the Muslim brotherhood.”

“Since then, each have been working independently, Isam said”.

The Newspaper depends on its report on testimonies by the leaders of armed groups, confirming the ongoing clash between the two sides of KSA and Qatar.

One of the leaders has stated that Saudi Arabia has been outraged by Qatar for supporting the Muslim brotherhood, “Saudis want to support the Salafists, said the Free Army leader”.

Abu Hamza said that he went for several times to Turkey in order to seek military support and fund via the Muslim Brotherhood, but the negotiations have been filed due to their insistence on controlling on the operations which have been operated in Syria, in which we refuse, said Abu Hamza.”

The paper adds that Al - Thani decision to unite the groups in northern Edlib has gigged Al-Saud, who in turn asked their cells at home to find leaders led by their representatives on the ground and under the supervision of Lebanese MP Okab Saker, who’s in Turkey, helping to distribute the money and deliver it to terrorists.

This very matter has resulted in establishing two commands or more for the terrorists inside Syria… what has been making it more complicated, for all parts, the Newspaper concluded.

EU sanctions 30 Syrian individuals and firms

Source : The Daily Star

LUXEMBOURG: The European Union slapped fresh sanctions against President Bashar al- Assad's regime Monday, agreeing an assets freeze and travel ban on 28 Syrians and two firms at a meeting of EU foreign ministers.

This 19th round of sanctions since the start of the Syrian conflict in March last year brings to 181 the number of people and to 54 the number of companies blacklisted by the EU.

Central Aleppo war zone

Source : Voice of Russia

Reports are coming in of heavy fighting between Syrian government forces and rebels in the historical centre of Syria’s second city Aleppo.

Many of the city’s architectural treasures are under threat.

Aleppo is into its umpteenth month as a war zone.

In Damascus, meanwhile, terrorists have detonated two powerful car bombs, injuring a pro-government television reporter.

Saudi officer among Syrian opposition fighters killed in Maarret

A Saudi army officer has been killed by Syrian government troops during clashes with armed opposition formations in the west of the country.

The officer, Mohammad Salem al-Harbi has been fighting alongside the rebels in the city of Maarret an-Nouman about 70 km from Aleppo. Several Turkish mercenaries were also killed.

The internal conflict in Syria has been raging for more than a year and a half. The government says it is confronted by well-armed militants receiving outside help.

Lebanon Keen on Syria's Security and Stability, Lebanese Foreign Minister Says

Source : SANA, Syria

BEIRUT, (SANA)- Lebanese Foreign and Expatriates Minister, Adnan Mansour, stressed Lebanon's keenness on the security and stability in Syria due to the geographical position and distinguished historical relations between the two countries.

In a statement to the Lebanese An-Nahar newspaper published on Sunday, Mansour said that there are some who want to exploit the events in Syria to undermine the situation in Lebanon and other countries, pointing out to the necessity of that Lebanon has to control its borders with Syria to prevent the infiltration of gunmen into or out of Syria.

He stressed that the Lebanese army is doing its duty in this regard, but it doesn't prevent the infiltration of the armed members into Syria.

Minister Mansour added that the repercussions of the situation in Syria will influence the whole region, particularly Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan.

He called for fortifying the Lebanese internal front and national awareness to foil any attempt to undermine Lebanon's security.

H.Zain/ R. Raslan

Syrian Army Extends Operations in Aleppo

Syrian Army Extends Operations in Aleppo

Source : Fars News Agency

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Syrian army announced that it plans to widen military operations in Aleppo and other regions in Southern and Eastern Syria, adding that it is resolved to take back full control over Khalidiya district of Aleppo in the next few days.

The Syrian army is now in full control over the western parts of Aleppo, including al- Maydan and Karam al-Jabal districts, and can now advance into eastern districts of Aleppo, Syria's second largest city and also its commercial hub, military analysts said.

The armed rebels have planted bombs and mines in Aleppo in order to prevent the Syrian army's advancement into the eastern districts of the city.

The Syrian army took back full control of a key air defense base in Reef District of Damascus on Sunday after intense clashes with terrorists.

Armed rebels fighting the Syrian government had seized the air defense base of Atibah battalion near Damascus on Saturday.

On Saturday, the Syrian army killed over 400 terrorists during military operations in the different districts of Aleppo and Homs.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country.

Hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed, when some protest rallies turned into armed clashes.

The government blames outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups for the deaths, stressing that the unrest is being orchestrated from abroad.

In October 2011, calm was eventually restored in the Arab state after President Assad started a reform initiative in the country, but Israel, the US and its Arab allies are seeking hard to bring the country into chaos through any possible means. Tel Aviv, Washington and some Arab capitals have been staging various plots in the hope of increasing unrests in Syria.

Syria Closes Airspace for Turkish Passenger Jets

Source : RIA Novosti

The Syrian Foreign Ministry announced a decision to close the country’s airspace for all Turkish civilian aircraft, Syria’s state-run SANA news agency reported.

The ministry said that the step is retaliatory after Turkey closed its skies for Syrian civil aircraft and that the decision would come into force beginning on midnight of October 13.

Turkish authorities said they did not close the airspace for Syrian passenger jets, but added that they would be intercepting all aircraft suspected of carrying prohibited cargo.

On Wednesday, Turkish fighter jets forced a Syrian passenger aircraft en route from Moscow to land at the airport in the Turkish capital Ankara. Turkey said it suspected a prohibited military cargo on board of the aircraft.

Tensions between Damascus and Ankara escalated in October after an artillery shell allegedly fired by the Syrian army landed in a Turkish border village killing five.

In response, the Turkish parliament authorized the government to launch cross- border military operations as a deterrent against potential attacks from Syria for the period of one year.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly called on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down accusing him of murdering his own people. The Syrian authorities, in return, have accused Turkey of arming and funding Syrian rebels

Big blast rocks Damascus district before daybreak

Source: Xinhua | English.news.cn

Big blast rocks Damascus district before daybreak

English.news.cn 2012-10-14 08:51:13

DAMASCUS, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- A big blast was heard before the crack of dawn Sunday at an upscale district of the capital, in what appeared to be a booby-trapped car explosion, witnesses and media reports said.

The blast at al-Mazzeh was believed to have been caused by a booby- trapped car that went off near a high-end restaurant, reports said, adding that no human causalities were reported.

The street at which the blast happened is also close to a number of foreign embassies located in that area, including the Iranian one, and also some headquarters and houses of Syrian officials.

Still, the target of the blast could not be determined immediately due to its strange timing.

Locals in the area posted online images of the blast site, showing a ravaged building and piles of debris.

Opposition: Troops of Lebanese Hezbollah fight in Syria

Source :Trend.Az

Troops of Lebanese Hezbollah fight in Syria, head of the opposition military council of Aleppo Colonel Al-Akkad said on Saturday, the Turkish online newspaper Time Turk reported.

According to Al-Akkad, troops of Hezbollah are fighting in such cities as Aleppo and Homs.

Earlier, former Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri also said that Hezbollah sends fighters and weapons to the Syrian regime. He noted that the militants of Hezbollah participate in military operations against the opposition Syrian army, and it is done at the order of President Bashar al-Assad, who asked Hezbollah to sent fighters to Syria.

Anti-government protests have continued in Syria for a year and half.

According to UN, the total number of victims of the conflict in Syria is nearing 20,000. More than 230,000 have become refugees with around three million in need of humanitarian assistance. The Syrian authorities say they oppose the well-armed militants

French President Francois Hollande admitted the existence of French terrorists in Syria

Source : SANA

PARIS, (SANA)- French President Francois Hollande admitted the existence of French terrorists in Syria, vowing to hunt the terrorists in France down and eliminate them.

In interviews with France 24 channel and TV5 Monde channel on Thursday, Hollande said "We have even learned that there are French expatriates in Mali, as there are in Somalia, as we have found in Syria, who could then return to the country with terrorist objectives. I cannot allow that."

He warned of the possibility that there are some terrorist cells in France who were likely homegrown and had "no connection" to foreign sides.

"We will not let them get away; we will hunt them down and eliminate them,” Hollande told France 24.

His vow came following the dismantling of a terrorist cell that plotted attacks in France.

In the same context, Paris prosecutor, Francois Molins, stressed that suspected members of an Islamist cell, dismantled last Saturday, were planning to join 'jihadists' fighting in Syria.

A number of Western countries, particularly France and Britain, have been recently witnessing a rise in the activities of radical groups that goes in line with a rise in the process of recruiting extremists to fight in other areas of the world.

The British Foreign Office on Wednesday admitted that British extremists intend to join the fighting in Syria.

The Belgium judiciary has also opened an investigation into networks involved in organizing mercenaries and takfiris to send them to fight in Somalia.

Turkey redirected the European missile defense system in the Kurecik base to Syria

Turkey Redirects European Missile Defense System to Syria,

Source : Turkish Weekly

Turkey redirected the European missile defense system in the Kurecik base near the city of Malatya to Syria to monitor the situation in the country, the Sabah newspaper reported.

This will allow Turkey to control offensive and defensive actions of the Syrian government troops and missile launches. According to the newspaper, Turkey took such a decision with the consent of NATO after shells from Syrian territory killed five Turkish citizens on Oct.3.

Turkey is proceeding to deliver military equipment to the border with Syria after the Turkish parliament made a decision enabling trans-boundary operations against Syria. Ankara states that such measures are taken to prevent further provocations of Syria, and start of an armed conflict is out of the question.

The decision to deploy elements of the European missile defense shield in Turkey was made at the NATO summit in Lisbon in 2010, and Turkey initially supported the initiative.

The agreement on deploying missile defense radar in a military base in Kurecik was signed by U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Francis Ricciardone and Advisor to Foreign Minister, Firuddin Sinirlioglu in September 2011.

Syrian Army kills 1000 gunmen in Homs

Source : Breaking News Syria

Breaking News reporter in Hasaka denied the

news about a big explosion in the city,

confirming that the city is calm and peaceful.

In Daraa, our correspondent stated that the 3

militants Adnan Sultan, Abed al-Qader Kanakri,

called as Abu al-Zattamia, and the leader

Muhammad Hussein al-Sherek, have been killed.

In Homs, a military source confirmed in an

exclusive statement to Breaking News that the

clashes continued in al-Qusair and its

ere the Syrian Army is determined on the fast settlement.

ared that the Syrian Army has moved forward against the gunmen,

y killed about 1000 insurgents and injured hundreds of them, as

Lebanon.

correspondent in Homs pointed out that militants have attacked a

om Lebanon, at al-Rayhania junction on Homs – Tartous road.

id that the militants assaulted the passengers of the bus, what

artyrs and 8 injuries.

battles continued in the intense neighborhoods, where our reporter

ut that the Syrian Army was able to kill 10 gunmen in clashing with

Eyes hospital, as 15 other gunmen were killed at Qadi al-Asqar roundabout.

In Edlib, our reporter stated that the Syrian Army foiled an infiltration attempt for

insurgents at Azmarin location in Salqeen, which resulted in the death of many of

them who were coming from Turkey.

Syrian Army units clashes with armed rebels in Kharja and Deir Sanbel villages, of

Jabal al-Zawieh, what resulted in deaths and injuries upon the militants' ranks and

the destruction of several vehicles, provided with machineguns.

The severe clashes took place for the fourth day on a row in Ma'aret al-Nu'man,

where a field source pointed in an exclusive statement for Breaking News Network

that the Syrian Army forces have chased the insurgents of Free Army militia, what

resulted in the death of many gunmen.

The source pointed out that the dead militants included the so-called al-Maslan,

where engineering units dismantled 10 explosive devices on Darkoush road.

The Syrian Army caused insurgents, who targeted a military patrol, major losses in

Ma'aret al-Nu'man countryside, where a military source pointed out to Breaking

News Network the death of a leader in Free Army militia, called Abu al-Tareq.

Turkey sends diplomatic note to Damascus over "violation" in shipment

Source : Xinhua | English.news.cn

English.news.cn 2012-10-11 23:25:26

ANKARA, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkey on Thursday issued a diplomatic note to Syrian Consulate in Turkish largest city of Istanbul over "violation of civil aviation rules" in a Syrian passenger plane en route from Moscow to Damascus.

A civilian Syrian plane was forced to land in Esenboga Airport in the Turkish capital of Ankara on Wednesday and stayed at the airport for nine hours for inspection on suspicion of carrying military equipment destined for Syria.

The receiver note on the cargo was the Syrian Defense Ministry, a Turkish official told Xinhua, adding that the cargo's bill of lading was misinformed by the Syrian authorities.

Turkey's examination on the seized cargo, which has not been confiscated yet, was still underway, and might finalize on Thursday night, the official said.

The plane, belonging to Syrian Airlines, was released after the search.

The Syrian Airlines remained the only carrier connecting Moscow and Damascus, after Russia's flagship Aeroflot Airline canceled its flights in August, citing commercial reasons.

Syria - Newsfeed|TopNews Oct. 11. 2012

Source : Breaking News Syria

Syrian foreign ministry declares a statement about detaining the Syrian airplane by Turkey

----------------------------------------

Eight Syrians killed in bus ambush on Lebanon-Syria border

Source : Al Akhbar English

Gunmen attacked a bus transporting Syrian workers at the Lebanon border Thursday, killing eight passengers and wounding another eight, Syrian state television said.

----------------------------------------

Syrian politician killed in Aleppo

Source : Trend.Az

Gunmen killed a member of the Syrian parliament in the northern province of Aleppo on Thursday, activists in the area said, reported dpa.

----------------------------------------

Syria stops purchase of electricity from Turkey

Source : Xinhua.news

ANKARA, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Syria has stopped purchasing electricity from Turkey, Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz told reporters on Thursday

----------------------------------------

U.S. military taskforce active near Syria

Source : Tehran Times

The United States military has secretly sent a task force of more than 150 planners and other specialists to Jordan to help the armed forces there

Syria slams UN call for unilateral ceasefire as "incomplete"

Source: Xinhua | English.news.cn

DAMASCUS, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Syrian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday slammed as "incomplete and contained half of the truth" the calls of the UN chief Ban Ki-moon who said recently that the Syrian government has to "immediately declare a unilateral ceasefire."

Syria's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Jihad Makdissi said that Ban proposed implementing unilateral ceasefire and, in the same UN session, the Syrian side informed him that Syria has already implemented this proposal twice.

Makdissi charged that in both times, the armed groups exploited the government's commitment to the ceasefire and consolidated their presence in several areas.

Since then, Makdissi said, the human losses among military and civilians have doubled due to the terrorist operations carried out by these groups in violation of the truce.

"We agreed with the UN secretary-general that the truce aims at creating appropriate atmosphere for the desired political dialogue and not to undermine Syria's stability and exploit the commitment of the Syrian state," Makdissi noted.

He said that his country has "asked the secretary-general to send his envoys to the concerned countries, especially Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey which fund, harbor, train and arm the armed groups in order to ensure these countries' commitment to refrain from such acts."

Ban recently said that "It has been over 19 months during which time more than 20-thousand people have been killed," adding that the situation has reached such an unacceptable level.

"That is why I have conveyed my strong message to the Syrian government that they should immediately declare a unilateral ceasefire,"

Iraqi PM: Turkey not threatened by Syria, don't overblow war or drag in NATO

Iraqi PM: Turkey not threatened by Syria, don't overblow war or drag in NATO — RT

Syria - Newsfeed Oct. 10. 2012

Opposition to set up inside Syria in days

Source: thetelegraph.com.au

SYRIA'S main exiled opposition coalition the Syrian National Council will in a "matter of days" set up in a rebel-controlled area inside the country, a top member of the group says.

"Very soon, we will install ourselves in Syria, deep in Syrian territory. It's a matter of days," Jamal al-Ward, a SNC official in charge of relations with the rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA), told AFP.

According to another SNC source, discussions over setting up operations inside Syria "have been going for a month."

Ward said that SNC leader Abdel Basset Sayda and other members of the executive committee will regularly travel to Syria via Atme, a village in Idlib province in the northwest which is a key rear base for the rebels near the Turkish border.

Sayda entered Syria from Turkey on Monday for the first time since he took up leadership of the opposition, visiting Atme and the front line outpost Bab al-Hawa.

------------------------------------

Gunmen of Homs flee to Lebanon, Homs to be safe within hours

Source: Breaking News Syria

Dozens of insurgents have fled to Lebanon in the aftermath of a military operation by the Syrian Army in the province of Homs.

On Tuesday, Lebanese security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that dozens of insurgents entered the country through the Mashareeh al-Qaa area over the past two days, the Lebanese newspaper Daily Star reported.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese Army has beefed up its presence along the border with Syria.

Furthermore, Al-Watan Newspaper has atated today that the Syrian Army has been making huge advance in Homs province, killing large numbers of the Free Army fighters.

The Newspaper stated that “All neighborhoods in Homs will be declared safe and secure within Hours”.

------------------------------------

Syrian Rebels Seize Key Town on Aleppo-Damascus Highway | News

Source: Antiwar.com

Syrian rebel fighters have reportedly seized the strategically important town of Maaret al-Numan today, with report that government forces have withdrawn from all checkpoints in the area except for the one at the entrance.

The town has been contested for months, and the military had been effectively in control since June. The town, in the Idlib Province, lies of the highway between Aleppo and the capital city of Damascus, effectively cutting Aleppo off from reinforcements.

Aleppo has been the site of some of the bloodiest fighting for over a month now, with both rebels and regime predicting a quick victory but instead seeing a stalemate, bringing Syria’s largest city and industrial capital to a standstill as much of it is now a constant open-fire zone.

As Syria’s most important city, Aleppo of course has more than one highway leading to it, so it is unclear how important losing the one to Damascus will be for regime forces there. Still, the move suggests the rebels are trying to make inroads in Syria’s supply route

Syria sends extra troops after rebels seize key town: activists

Source: The Daily Star

BEIRUT: Syria's army has rushed extra troops to Idlib after a strategic town in the northwestern province was seized by rebels, cutting off routes to the embattled commercial capital Aleppo, a watchdog said Wednesday.

"Helicopters are overflying the area," said Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, without elaborating on how many additional troops were on their way to the town of Maaret al-Numan.

The Britain-based Observatory said six civilians were killed in army shelling of Maaret al-Numan on Tuesday, while 12 rebel fighters died in the fight for control of the town.

The Observatory had on Tuesday reported that rebels overran Maaret al-Numan, on the highway linking Damascus with Aleppo, after a fierce 48-hour gunbattle and heavy shelling.

"Regular forces pulled back from all of their checkpoints around Maaret al-Numan, except for one at the entrance of the town," said Abdel Rahman.

"This is a strategic location on the route from Damascus to Aleppo. All the regime reinforcements headed to Aleppo must pass through Maaret al-Numan."

In a video released by activists on Tuesday, about 20 fighters belonging to the Martyrs' Brigade can be seen gathered around a tank at a captured army checkpoint in Maaret al-Numan shooting into the air in celebration.

Maaret al-Numan had originally fallen under rebel control on June 10, but it was retaken by the army in August, said the Observatory.

Aleppo, north of Maaret al-Numan, has been rocked by intense fighting between rebels and regime forces since mid-July and has become the focal point of the conflict ravaging Syria.

Up to 400 Syrians flee Qusayr for Lebanon

LBCI News

Nearly 400 Syrians from around the rebel-held central town of Qusayr have fled for neighboring Lebanon in the past 24 hours, a Lebanese security official reported on Tuesday. "Among them are men, women and children," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

A Syrian security official told AFP on Monday that the army hoped to eliminate the last pockets of resistance in the central city of Homs and nearby Qusayr by the end of the week to free up troops for battle zones in the north, such as Aleppo.

Many of the villagers crossed the border on foot, while others came by motorbike or donkey, an AFP journalist in the eastern Bekaa Valley said.

Al-Assad Appoints New Syrian Ambassador to Iraq

Source: Almanar

Local Editor

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad issued a decree Tuesday appointing Sattam Jad'an Al-Dandah as Syria's Ambassador to Iraq.

Syrian news agecy SANA further reported that "Al-Assad later received Al-Dandah and provided him with his directives, wishing him success in his duties."

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al- Moallem attended the swearing-in ceremony.

Former Syrian Ambassador to Iraq Nawaf Fares has left the government a couple of months ago as the crisis in Syria was aggravating.

NATO chief calls for much stronger pressure on Syria

Source: Xinhua | English.news.cn

BRUSSELS, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Tuesday urged the international community, especially the United Nations Security Council, to put "much stronger" pressure on the Syrian government to bring about a political solution.

"It is for the United Nations Security Council to send a very strong, united message to the Syrian leadership: stop violence, engage in political process," Rasmussen said following a meeting of NATO defense ministers.

The NATO chief said he deeply regretted that the Security Council failed to reach "a legally-binding resolution that could send such a strong message."

"I do believe that this failure ... has sent a wrong and very unfortunate signal to the Syrian leadership. To facilitate a political solution, the international community should put much stronge pressure," he said.

Though Rasmussen claimed NATO defense ministers only talked about military capabilities, the so called "Smart Defense" initiative, instead of the Syrian crisis, he was still bombarded at the news conference by questions on Syria.

NATO has expressed support for Turkey after mortar bombs fired from Syria killed five Turkish civilians last week, which has triggered reprisal attacks from Turkey.

Rasmussen repeated that the military has all necessary plans in place to defend Turkey if necessary, but urged all parties to show restraints and avoid escalation of the ongoing conflicts between Turkey and neighboring Syria.

"Turkey has a right to defend itself within the international law ... and obviously, Turkey can rely on NATO solidarity."

Syria - Newsfeed Oct. 9. 2012

Source: edition.presstv.

Dozens killed in Syria twin blasts

Dozens of people have been killed after two bomb attacks at a military base near the Syrian capital, Damascus.

One of the blasts on Tuesday was set off in an ambulance vehicle in Hasrata.

The incident is the latest in a series of attacks by foreign- backed armed groups against Syrian government and military positions.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki- moon has warned of escalating violence along the Syrian border with Turkey.

Earlier on Monday, Syrian government troops killed at least 100 foreign-backed insurgents near the city of Homs.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011.

Damascus says outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorists are the driving factors behind the unrest and deadly violence, but the opposition accuses the security forces of being behind the killings.

The Syrian government says that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country, and there are reports that a very large number of the insurgents are foreign nationals, mostly from Egypt, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, and Afghanistan.

Fars News Agency :: Syrian Army Reinforces Positions along Borders with Lebanon

Syrian Army Reinforces Positions along Borders with Lebanon

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Syrian army reinforced its positions along its borders with Lebanon after recent clashes with a number of terrorist groups there.

The Syrian army dispatched armored vehicles to al-Dabusiyeh region along its border with Lebanon after it clashed with insurgents near Al-Ubudiyyah area, the Lebanese al-Manar television reported.

Despite efforts by the Lebanese army to prevent the flow of armed men and Western-made weapons into Syrian soil, they are still smuggled into Syria.

The Syrian army has stationed forces along its borderline with Lebanon and it has to confront the rebels trespassing the borders everyday.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country.

Hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed, when some protest rallies turned into armed clashes.

The government blames outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups for the deaths, stressing that the unrest is being orchestrated from abroad.

In October 2011, calm was eventually restored in the Arab state after President Assad started a reform initiative in the country, but Israel, the US and its Arab allies are seeking hard to bring the country into chaos through any possible means. Tel Aviv, Washington and some Arab capitals have been staging various plots in the hope of increasing unrests in Syria.

The US daily, Washington Post, reported in May that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups battling the President Bashar al-Assad's government have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States.

The newspaper, quoting opposition activists and US and foreign officials, reported that Obama administration officials emphasized the administration has expanded contacts with opposition military forces to provide the Persian Gulf nations with assessments of rebel credibility and command-and-control infrastructure.

According to the report, material is being stockpiled in Damascus, in Idlib near the Turkish border and in Zabadani on the Lebanese border.

Opposition activists who several months ago said the rebels were running out of ammunition said in May that the flow of weapons - most bought on the black market in neighboring countries or from elements of the Syrian military in the past - has significantly increased after a decision by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Persian Gulf states to provide millions of dollars in funding each month.

Syria - Newsfeed Oct. 9. 2012

Misfire: NATO mortar ‘gift’ from Turkey to Syrian rebels

Source: newspaper — RT

The mortar used to attack the Turkish town of Akcakale is a design specific to NATO and was given to Syrian rebels by Ankara, according to Turkey’s Yurt newspaper. The mortar killed one adult and four children from the same family on Wednesday.

An article by the paper’s Editor-in-Chief, Merdan Yanardag, states that the newspaper received information from a reliable source, which claimed that Turkey itself sent the mortars to rebels in the so-called "free army."

“Turkey is a longtime member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and they’re going to act in conjunction with other NATO powers, so it’s unsurprising that this has happened,” editor of the Pan-African news wire, Abayomi Azikiwe, told RT.

NATO has so far shunned any military involvement in the conflict, but Azikiwe says the alliance is deeply involved in every decision that Turkey makes.

“Ankara isn’t taking any military actions or contemplating any type of military strategy without being in full cooperation with NATO forces,” he said.

Turkey retaliated at Syria for a sixth consecutive day on Monday, after a mortar from Syria landed in Turkey’s Hatay province.

And as Turkey fights to defend its border towns, the country’s president says the country’s military will take any action necessary.

"The worst-case scenarios are taking place right now in Syria … Our government is in constant consultation with the Turkish military. Whatever is needed is being done immediately as you see, and it will continue to be done," President Abdullah Gul said in a statement on Monday.

But it’s not only leaders within Turkey that are stating their opinions on the conflict.

Earlier on Monday, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned of the consequences that the conflict could bring to the region.

“The escalation of the conflict along the Syrian-Turkish border and the impact of the crisis on Lebanon are extremely dangerous,” Ban said at the opening of the World Forum for Democracy in Strasbourg, France.

The exchange of fire began last Wednesday, when Syrian mortar shells killed a woman and four children from the same family in Akcakale.

Many fear the situation will lead to regional conflict, with political analyst Dan Glazebrook, saying that Ankara aims to drag NATO into a war with Syria.

“On the one hand the [Turks] are trying to give cover to the rebels to continue their fight, as they know that the rebels are getting defeated on the ground so they are bombarding Syria as a way to help the rebels not lose too many of their positions,” Glazebrook told RT. “But I think also they may be hoping that they can somehow nudge, provoke NATO into taking action as well,  into prompting a kind of blitzkrieg that is actually the only thing really that would enable the rebels to win now at this state.”

Syria - Newsfeed Oct. 9. 2012

Ban Ki-moon urges to stop States to stop arming Rebels in Syria

Source: Breaking News Syria

United Nations Secretary, General Ban Ki- moon, has warned of the escalation of violence along the Syrian-Turkish border and the effect of Syria’s unrest on Lebanon.

"The escalation of the conflict along the Syrian-Turkish border and the impact of the crisis on Lebanon are extremely dangerous. They show that this is a regional calamity with global ramifications," Ban said at the opening of the World Forum for Democracy in the French city of Strasbourg.

He also urged countries supplying weapons to both Damascus and the insurgents to stop militarizing the unrest in Syria.

"I am deeply concerned by the continued flow of arms to both the Syrian government and opposition forces. I urge again those countries providing arms to stop doing so," he said.

"Militarization only aggravates the situation … I am calling on all concerned to abandon the use of violence, and move toward a political solution. That is the only way out of the crisis," the UN chief added.

------------------------------------------

Syrian rebels have Ukrainian-made arms - BBC:

Source: Voice of Russia

BBC reporters have found out that Syrian rebels have boxes with Ukrainian-made arms at their disposal.

The boxes were meant for the Saudi Army. But the way the boxes have ended up in the hands of Syrian rebel fighters has not been disclosed.

To prove their findings, the reporters have published, on their website, a photo of a box with a marking that makes it clear that the box content has been produced at a factory in the city of Lugansk, and then sent by plane from Gostomel airport, near Kiev.

The city of destination is Riyadh.

The Saudi authorities have refused to comment on the report. Meanwhile, Damascus has long since pointed out that it's facing the resistance of well-trained rebel fighters that rely heavily on foreign aid.

Syria - Newsfeed Oct. 8. 2012

60 Gunmen killed in Aleppo, 4 foreign snipers annihilated in Deir Al-Zour

Source: Breaking News Syria

The Units of Syrian Arab Army has launched on Monday a wide military operation to cleansing Karem Al-Jabal area of terrorists.

Our correspondent to Aleppo has reported that more than 60 militants have been killed, as five vehicles, mounted by Dushka machineguns, in addition to a mortar launcher, have been seized this morning in the very area.

In Homs province, our reporter said that severe clashes fired out between the troops of the Syrian Army and gunmen in the village of Ziraa, located in Quasair Countryside.

The reporter added that the armed conflicts resulted in killing a large number of militants, including the terrorist leader Abed Al-Karim Al- Shami and Firas Al-Shami, known as Hajj.

Furthermore, in Deir Al-Zour province, our correspondent confirmed that 4 foreign snipers have been killed today in al-Mwazfeen neighborhood.

Besides, in Raqqa, the forces of Syrian army, have destroyed two vehicles in the area of Tal Abyad, as all the militants who were carried inside have been killed.

Turkey has returned fire after mortar from Syria landed in Turkey

Source: RT

Turkey has returned fire after mortar from Syria landed in Turkey’s Hatay province, Reuters reports. It's the sixth day of retaliation, as Syrian fighting continues to spill across the border.

The round from Syria landed 150-200 meters within Turkey's border in the district of Hacipasa, according to a local official.

The retaliatory fire comes just two days after Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu warned that the country would respond forcefully to every Syrian shell that lands on Turkish soil.

Turkish soldiers were deployed along the border near Akcakale earlier on Monday.

Some residents in the town have abandoned their homes and students have been asked to stay home.

Just yesterday, a mortar from Syria hit near a plant belonging to the Turkish Grain board, several hundred meters from the center of Akcakale.

short time later, at least six mortars could be heard fired from Turkey. The mayor of the town, Abdulhakim Ayhan, confirmed that Turkish artillery immediately had returned fire.

No casualties resulted from Sunday’s exchange.

The crisis between the two countries began on Wednesday, when Syrian mortar shells killed a woman and four children from the same family in Akcakale. The shells also wounded at least 13 people. The incident prompted artillery strikes from neighboring Turkey.

The recent exchanges of fire have stoked fears that Syria’s conflict will escalate into regional instability.

Qatar urges Syrian rebels not to kill Iranian prisoners

Via: Al Akhbar English

Qatar urges Syrian rebels not to kill Iranian prisoners

Qatar, a major supporter of Syrian rebels, urged them on Sunday not to kill Iranians seized two months ago near Damascus, after the captors threatened to start killing their 48 prisoners.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jasim al-Thani made the appeal following a request from Iran, an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, to secure a release of the captives.

The Syrian rebel al-Baraa brigade said on Thursday it would start killing the Iranians unless Assad, battling an 18-month-old uprising, freed Syrian opposition detainees and stopped shelling civilian areas.

A statement on the brigade's Facebook page on Sunday said it had extended its deadline by 24 hours at the request of mediators.

The rebels say the captives are members of Iran's Revolutionary Guards. Tehran says they were pilgrims visiting Shia Muslim shrines.

(Reuters)

Syria - Newsfeed TopNews Oct. 8. 2012

Fars News Agency :: Syrian Army Purging Aleppo of Terrorists Syrian Army Purging Aleppo of Terrorists TEHRAN (FNA)- The Syrian Army forces are preparing for massive operations in Karam Al-Jabal neighborhood in the north of Aleppo city to purge terrorists from the city. Clashes between Syrian army soldiers and terrorists in different districts of Aleppo on Monday resulted in the death of 60 terrorists and destruction of five vehicles equipped with machine guns. The Syrian army has carried out four special operations in different districts of Aleppo during which 16 vehicles equipped with machine guns were destroyed and tens of terrorists were killed. The army also killed several terrorists in Aleppo's Bustan al-Pasha and Salehin districts. On Friday, the Syrian army purged the terrorists from Aleppo's districts of al-Sakhor and Suleiman Pasha. The army also chased terrorists in different districts of Damascus, including al-Qudsiya district on Saturday and inflicted heavy losses and casualties on them. Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country. Hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed, when some protest rallies turned into armed clashes. The government blames outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups for the deaths, stressing that the unrest is being orchestrated from abroad. In October 2011, calm was eventually restored in the Arab state after President Assad started a reform initiative in the country, but Israel, the US and its Arab allies are seeking hard to bring the country into chaos through any possible means. Tel Aviv, Washington and some Arab capitals have been staging various plots in the hope of stirring unrests in Syria once again. The US and its western and regional allies have long sought to topple Bashar al-Assad and his ruling system. Media reports said that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States. ------------------------------------------ Al-Halqi: Syrian Arab Army Will Complete His Mission of Eliminating Armed Terrorist Groups Soon Source: SANA DAMASCUS, (SANA) – Prime Minister Dr. Wael al-Halqi lauded the role of Syrian media in confronting the conspiracy against Syria and exposing its dimension and goals, underlining the Syrian media's success in relaying the truth to the world's public opinion regarding the terrorism and universal war targeting Syria and in uncovering the misdirection campaigns waged by sedition channels and mercenary media. During a meeting on Monday with head of the executive office of the Journalists Union Elias Murad and members of the office, al- Halqi said that the Syrian Arab Army is waging the battle against terrorism valiantly, and managed to inflict heavy losses on terrorist groups and restore security to cleared areas, all thanks to the Syrian people's unity. The Prime Minister affirmed that the Syrian Arab Army will complete his mission of eliminating armed terrorist groups soon. He also affirmed the government's commitment to providing citizens' needs of food, medicine and petroleum products and ensuring the availability of goods in local markets, noting that there are stockpiles that are sufficient for local needs despite the embargo and the sanctions against Syria. The meeting also tackled a number of professional and vocational issues related to journalism and means to improve media performance, in addition to providing the Union's needs and overcoming difficulties hindering its projects. Premier al-Halqi affirmed that the demands and issues of the Union's executive office will be given proper attention and that its investment projects will be supported, calling for boosting communication between media and the executive and administrative authorities in order to improve work mechanism, relay the needs of citizens, uncover corruption, and achieve public interests. In turn, Murad and the office members lauded the government's efforts in support of national media and its work to ensure the availability of goods and stability of the Syrian Pound exchange rate and providing services. ------------------------------------------

Moallem: calls for Assad to step down are blatant interference in Syrian affairs

Source: LBC News

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem said on Monday during a televised interview that the US is using the chemical weapons issue as an alibi to launch a “campaign” similar to the one that led to the fall of President Saddam Hussein.

The news agency SANA mentioned that Foreign Minister Walid Mouallem said in a televised speech that the key to the success of Ibrahimi's mission lies in neighboring countries that harbor, arm and support financially and media wise armed groups.

He also said that Akhdar Ibrahimi might face the same problem as his predecessor Kofi Annan did in case he didn't get a real commitment from those interfering countries, especially from the USA which is leading the entire circumstances, as he said.

As for the related information reported on the presence of chemical weapons in Syria, Mouallem stressed that these are "US related thoughts similar to the campaign launched against Iraq regarding the presence of weapons of mass destruction there".

He also denied any dialogue with the American authorities.

During a speech to the U.N. General Assembly on Monday, Mouallem accused the United States, France, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey of supporting "terrorism" in Syria by providing arms and money.

The Syrian Foreign Minister also said that calls for Assad to step down are "blatant interference" in Syria's internal affairs.

Moallem also called on all Syrian refugees to return to their villages.

For his part, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon criticized the Syrian government on Monday for killings, rights abuses, aerial and artillery attacks and expressed frustration that the 18-month conflict was getting worse.

Ban "raised in the strongest terms the continued killings, massive destruction, human rights abuses, and aerial and artillery attacks committed by the government" during a meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Mouallem on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, his spokesman said.

Syria launches another artillery strike against Turkey: Voice of Russia

Syrian artillery shell landed on Turkish territory Sunday evening some 200 meters away from apartment buildings, and 150 meters from the Syrian border, killing or injuring no one.

The latest shell landed on a vacant land in Hatay province in southern Turkey.

"Our border troops immediately returned fire. We believe the mortar attack was by Syrian security forces,” said a written statement released by Hatay Governor's Office.

The incident came just hours after another mortar shell fired from Syrian territory landed in the town of Akcakal where five people died as a result of a similar attack on Friday.

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Blast appears in Damascus

Via: Breaking News Syria

large detonation took place inside the Police Command building in al- Fahhameh neighborhood of Damascus.

The explosion occurred by a car bomb that was inside the garage of the building, which resulted in 1 martyr, several injuries and large material damages so far.

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Erdogan tells Turks to prepare for Syria war if necessary

Via: Strategic-Culture.org

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on his nation to be prepared for a possible war with the neighboring Syria if need be.

"You have to be ready at every moment to go to war if it is necessary. If you are not ready for this, you are not a state, if you are not ready for this, you are not a nation,” Erdogan said in a speech on Sunday.

The prime minister reiterated that Turkey does not want war, but warned Syria not to test its resolve.

"Nobody should attempt to test Turkey's decisiveness and sensibility,” stated the Turkish prime minister whose country is accused of being a key member of an international coalition attempting to destabilize Syria.

Tensions have been running high between Syria and Turkey, with Damascus accusing Ankara -- along with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, France, and the United States -- of backing a deadly insurgency that has claimed the lives of many Syrians, including security and army personnel.

“Nobody should ask… but what will happen if a war were to begin and bring us to that point. You should be ready for it and have the memorandum in hand. What is necessary will be done if it becomes necessary," he stated.

Erdogan’s remarks came amid days of military strikes between the two countries.

On Sunday, Turkey's military fired an artillery shell into Syria shortly after a mortar round fired from Syria hit the southeastern Turkish border town of Akcakale.

On Saturday, the Turkish military fired mortar shells into Syria for the fourth day in a row after a number of projectiles slammed into the southern border province of Hatay.

Saturday’s exchange came three days after mortar shells from the Syrian side of the border killed five civilians in the town of Akcakale, which is located in Sanliurfa province in southeastern Turkey.

On October 5, Erdogan said that Turkey was not far from war with Syria due to the cross-border attacks.

"We are not interested in war, but we're not far from it either," Erdogan told a crowd in Istanbul.

On October 4, the Turkish parliament authorized cross-border military action against Syria “when deemed right.”

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Syrian Media Center Opens in Moscow 

Source: SANA

MOSCOW, (SANA) –The Ministry of Information inaugurated on Saturday the Syrian Media Center in Moscow with the aim of developing and enhancing media, cultural and political communication between Syria and Russia.

The center's mission is to relay an objective and true image of the events in Syria and to explain Syria's policy and stances to the Russian public opinion.

The center, which was opened on the occasion of the 39th anniversary of the October Liberation War, will also convey the Russian principal stances to the Syrian public opinion in cooperation with Russian media outlets to consolidate friendship ties between the two peoples.

During the inauguration ceremony, Syria's Ambassador in Moscow, Riad Haddad, said in his opening speech, the center will contribute to boosting friendship and cooperation ties between Syria and Russia through conveying the reality of the ongoing events in Syria to the Russian public opinion and conveying what is happening in Russia and its achievements to the Arab public opinion.

Ambassador Haddad pointed out that Syria has been suffering from conspiracies for more than 18 months, adding that the conspirators gave special importance to the media as its role has been extended to taking part in making and directing the events, not covering them only.

For his part, Deputy Head of the Middle East and North Africa Department in the Russian Foreign Ministry, Alexander Yakimov, said that a fierce media war was launched against Syria a long time ago, expressing confidence that the Syrian Media Center will contribute to conveying an objective image of the ongoing events in Syria to the Russian and international public opinion.

President of the Academy of Geopolitical Sciences in Russia, General Leonid Ivashov, stressed the importance of establishing this center, pointing out to the war which is waged against Syria.

He added that the geopolitical factors are the basic ones in the modern war, noting that defeating the enemy in the media is the most important factor in such wars.

Director of the Syrian Media Center, Dr. Fahad Kam Naqesh, pointed out to the importance of this step on the way to establishing such advanced Syrian media centers in several international capitals within a general plan set by the Syrian Information Ministry to inform the Russian and international public opinion about the reality of the ongoing events in Syria.

F.Allafi/H.Said

Syria - Newsfeed TopNews Oct. 7. 2012 / 7/365

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Via: Xinhua | English.news.cn

Army troops hammer insurgents near Syrian capital: paper

English.news.cn 2012-10-07 15:49:31

DAMASCUS, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian army has continued tracking down armed insurgent groups in some eastern hotspots of the capital Damascus, in which it used the air force to hammer their hideouts, the pro-government al-Watan daily reported Sunday.

The army operation took place at hotspots of the eastern al- Ghouta area, the report said, adding that intense clashes have taken place at al-Shaifoniah and Otaya suburbs after the armed men tried to attack a military barrack there.

The clashes, the paper said, led to the damaging of an electricity high-tension tower and caused a blackout in most areas in eastern Ghouta.

Al-Watan also said the army cleansed the western Damascus' suburb of Qudsiah from armed insurgency.

Meanwhile, in central Homs province, the paper said the Syrian troops had killed about 165 armed men at al-Khalidieh and some old districts, adding that another 40 were killed at al-Rastan, just outside Homs.

In another suburb of Homs, al-Watan said the army has unleashed a huge firepower to purge al- Qusair town of armed insurgency, while the activists Local Coordination Committees (LCC) reported heavy airstrikes at al-Jousieh area in al-Qusair, which has largely spiraled out of the government's control over the past months.

The LCC also reported intense fighting between the armed rebels and government troops at al- Midan district of northern Aleppo province, where the al-Watan daily boasted the army's advancement and claimed that the armed rebels had retreated along with other extremists groups linked to the al-Qaida terror network from some districts in that crucial city.

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Mass rallies in Australia and India in ''Get Your Hands off Syria'' Campaign

Via: Breaking News Syria

At the invitation of ''Get Your Hands off Syria'' and ''Australians for Syria'' groups, and the Syrian and Arab communities in Australia, the Australian cities of Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Hobart witnessed mass rallies in support to Syria against the campaign led by the West and the oil sheikhdoms.

The demonstrators chanted slogans saluting the Syrian Arab Army and its role in defending the country in the face of the crimes committed by the armed groups.

The people stressed that President al-Assad is the 'safety valve' for Syria to come out from the crisis.

Maher Dabbagh, Syria's Honorary Consul to Sydney said that the participants in the rallies wanted to show their support to Syria and to convey their stance about the situation there to the world and Australian public opinion.

Meanwhile, members of the Syrian community and Syrian and Arab students studying in India, with the participation of Indian political and popular figures, organized a stand to express support to Syria's leadership, people and army against the global war launched against their country.

In turn, Syria's Ambassador to India, Riyad Abbas, called upon members of the Syrian community to commit to steadfastness and unity and exert efforts to explain the reality of what Syria is facing.

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Turkey fires artillery into Syria after shelling

Via: Yahoo.com

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish forces fired across the frontier into Syria on Sunday after a shell launched from Syria landed in Turkey's border town of Akcakale, underlining Ankara's warning that it will respond with force to any violence spilling over into its territory.

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Syrian troops regain control of 2 rebellious suburbs of Damascus

Via: Xinhua

Syrian troops regain control of 2 rebellious suburbs of Damascus

English.news.cn 2012-10-08 00:09:55

DAMASCUS, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian troops totally purged two restive suburbs of the capital Damascus on Sunday from armed insurgency and announced them secure, the state-TV said.

Qudsaiah and Hameh have emerged as strongholds for armed rebels over the past few months, before the Syrian troops unleashed an offensive last week to recuperate the two adjunct suburbs from the rampant insurgency there.

Meantime, the sounds of sporadic shellfire have reverberated Sunday in several districts of Damascus, in what appeared to be ongoing military showdown in other restive suburbs.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has a network of activists on ground, said mortar shells landed at al-Qadam suburb of Damascus on Sunday, giving no further details on casualties at that battered countryside.

The Observatory said a rebel fighter was killed during clashes with government forces at the eastern Ghouta suburb Sunday.

Another activists' network, the Local Coordination Committees, placed the death toll of the people who got killed so far Sunday at 75, blaming the government forces of being behind the daily violence.

However, the activists' accounts could not be confirmed independently.

Meanwhile, Syria's official media said army troops repulsed an attack by armed rebels at the Hanano barracks in the northern city of Aleppo, killing many of them.

The Hanano barracks have been attacked several times over the past several months, during whic the armed rebels had managed to enter parts of the barracks but were later flushed out by the Syrian troops.

Sources have said that the Syrian army had recently sent a group of elite forces to Aleppo in hope of regaining full control over the sprawling crucial province, whose edges stretch to the Turkish borders.

Separately, an official source denied media reports circulating on some Arab TV news stations tha a Syrian jet fighter was downed earlier in the day by the rebels in eastern Deir al-Zour province.

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Syrian Rebels Claim Capturing President Assad’s Cousin | World | Via: RIA Novosti

Syrian rebels have claimed capturing Housam al-Assad, the cousin of President Bashar al-Assad, the Saudi-owned news channel Al Arabiya reported on Sunday.

Assad’s cousin was arrested by the al-Farouq brigade of the Free Syrian Army (FSA), Sheikh Adnan Al Arour, a Sunni Muslim preacher and a major Salafist leader in Syria, announced on his Twitter account.

“Housam al-Assad, the cousin of Bashar has been captured,” Sheikh Arour said.

The 73-year-old Arour fled Syria under the rule of Hafez Al Assad following the 1982 massacre in his hometown of Hama and settled in Saudi Arabia ever since. He has become one of the symbolic figures of the Syrian uprising against the Assad regime.

The Syrian conflict has claimed up to 20,000 lives according to various Syrian opposition groups. The UN puts the death toll at over 18,000 people. The Syrian authorities say 8,000 were killed.

The West is pushing for President Bashar al- Assad’s ouster while Russia and China are trying to prevent outside interference in Syria, saying that the Assad regime and the opposition are both to blame for the bloodshed.

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DAMASCUS, (SANA) – The Syrian Armed Forces on Saturday marked the 39th anniversary of the October Liberation War that restored the Arab nation's pride, dignity and influential presence in the international arena and boosted its standing among the nations and peoples of the world.

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Syrian opposition warns city of Homs could fall to al-Assad forces

Via: Trend.Az

7 October 2012, 17:30 (GMT+05:00)

Syrian government forces have sent reinforcements to central Homs and could gain complete control of the besieged city, a major opposition group warned Sunday, dpa reported.

"The criminal regime has dispatched extra troops to tighten the inhuman siege of the city," the Syrian National Council said in a brief statement.

"Homs' fall will mark a serious turning point in the course of events, subjecting the present and future of Syria as well as the region to great perils."

Opposition rebel forces and troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have been fighting in and around Homs for about four months.

The city has been a focal point in the uprising against al-Assad that began in March last year.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said government troops stepped up their shelling of Homs on Sunday and clashes between troops and rebels taking place inside the city claimed casualties on both sides.

News from Syria cannot be independently verified, as most foreign media are barred from the conflict-torn country.

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Iran reacts to Syrian rebels’ threat to kill 48 kidnapped Iranians - Trend.Az

Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct. 6 /Trend D.Khatinoglu/

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparst said that Syrian rebels and their supporters are responsible for safety of 48 Iranians who were kidnapped in Syria, IRIB news reported today.

Though a video released on You Tube, Syrian rebels said they will kill a group of Iranians captured in Syria in August after 48 hours, if Syrian regime and Iran do not put end to strike over Syrian citizens.

Syrian rebels say that this group consists of members of Iran's military force, IRGC.

Head of the Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Mohammad-Ali Jafari confirmed in September that Iran had former members of the Guard in Syria, but he said that this does not mean Iran's military presence over there.

Earlier, Iran's Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi said that some of kidnapped persons are retired military officers who went to Syria as pilgrims.

Mehmanparst said that Syrian rebels use Iranian kidnapped citizens as "humanitarian shield in the war with government".

Bloodshed between the Syrian government and opposition groups has continued for 19 months, leaving more than 24,000 victims. In August, more than 3,000 Syrians were killed.

Iran strongly defends the Syrian government.

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Source: Breaking News Syria

Aleppo – Syria: the Syrian forces confront an armed attack launched on Hanano barrack as the assailants have been killed

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The Daily Star - Mobile Edition :: News :: Middle East :: Syria clashes with armed infiltrators from Lebanon

AMMAN: Syrian state TV says soldiers have clashed with two armed groups that infiltrated from Lebanon, killing several of them.

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40 soldiers killed as Syria rebels take town: Voice of Russia

Forty government soldiers and nine rebels were killed on Saturday when rebels took a town in the northwestern province of Idlib near the border with Turkey, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

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Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan - 50 dead as Syrian rebels take border town

50 dead as Syrian rebels take border town

* Turkish PM says he is not looking for mandate for war

* Syrian defence minister says victory near for his forces; repentant rebels will be welcomed back

DAMASCUS: Nearly 50 soldiers and rebels were killed on Saturday in clashes near Syria’s northern border, as Turkey hit back against what it said was new mortar fire from inside Syria.

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Syria stuck in cross-border tension as violence raging - Xinhua | English.news.cn

DAMASCUS, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Violence in Syria and cross-border tension with neighboring Turkey continued Saturday while the Syrian defense minister stressed the Syrian army's resolution to rid the country of "terrorism."

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Turkey deploys military vehicles along border with Syria

English.news.cn 2012-10-06 21:52:03

ANKARA, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Military vehicles of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) were deployed in southeastern Turkey along the border with Syria on Saturday, the semi-official Aanatolia news agency reported.

The vehicles sent to Suruc town of the southeastern Sanliurfa province included a large number of tanks and missile defense systems, according to the report.

Turkey and Syria have been exchanging fire sporadically on the border for four days after a mortar shell from the Syrian side fell Wednesday in the Turkish border town of Akcakale in Sanliurfa province and killed five Turks.

The Turkish government said Wednesday in a statement that "Our armed forces in border region have given the required response in line with the rule of engagements. Targets in Syria, which were detected by radar, were shot by shelling."

"Turkey will never remain unresponsive against these sorts of provocations of Syrian regime within the framework of rules of engagement and international law," the statement said.

In an emergency session on Thursday, the Turkish parliament approved a motion for cross-border military operations inside Syria.

Ankara has been complaining about the spillover of Syrian artillery and gunfire into its territory, and has last week said it would act if mortar strikes were repeated from Syria.

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Syrian army capable of squashing terrorism, minister says - Xinhua | English.news.cn

English.news.cn 2012-10-06 22:40:38

DAMASCUS, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian army forces are capable of squashing terrorism and terrorists in all their shapes and colors, Syria's Minister of Defense Gen. Fahd Jassem al-Freij said Saturday.

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Syrian rebels threaten to kill Iranians

Source : CNN

(CNN) - Syrian rebels said they will start executing a group of about 48 Shiite pilgrims from Iran if Tehran and Damascus do not comply with their demands, according to a video posted this week on YouTube.