InfoAnda - Syrian forces crack down on protesters in Banias |

Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case
Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They

Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festival
Thursday, August 6, 2009

AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e

Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns International
Thursday, September 3, 2009

By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German

Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rally
Wednesday, March 18, 2009

By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an

Google's Android to be world No. 2 in 2010: report | | 11 September 2010
Activision says may stop supporting Sony PS3: report | 20 June 2009
Qualcomm pulls plug on Flo TV device sales | 6 October 2010

Turkey's top court bans pro-Kurdish party | | 12 December 2009

Forum Views () Forum Replies ()

Read more with google mobile : Syrian forces crack down on protesters in Banias |

Edition: U.S. Article Comments (0) Slideshow Video Full Focus Editor's choice A selection of our top photos from the past 24 hours. Full Article Follow Reuters Facebook Twitter RSS YouTube Read Eerie links between Harry Potter, bin Laden 02 May 2011 No proof Pakistanis knew bin Laden location: U.S. | 11:32am EDT Pakistan denies sheltering bin Laden amid U.S. skepticism | 11:38am EDT U.S. believes it can now destroy al Qaeda | 10:40am EDT Prince William back at work after royal wedding 7:31am EDT Discussed 166 Obama to make statement late Sunday, White House says 106 White House releases longer Obama birth certificate 104 Donald Trump calls U.S. leaders ”stupid” Watched Video of bin Laden compound fire Mon, May 2 2011 Osama bin Laden dead Mon, May 2 2011 Fire ants form rafts to defy floods Tue, Apr 26 2011 Syrian forces crack down on protesters in Banias Tweet Share this By Khaled Yacoub Oweis AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian security forces swept into the coastal city of Banias on Tuesday, a protest leader said, taking control of another urban center from demonstrators challenging the authoritarian rule of President Bashar... Email Print Related News France, Germany seek EU sanctions on Syria leaders 8:05am EDT UK says working with EU partners on Syria sanctions 10:36am EDT Assad nearing end of reign in Syria: Israel's Barak 3:42am EDT Syrian forces deploy in Banias: protest leader 7:06am EDT ICRC urges Syria to grant access to injured, detained 7:39am EDT Analysis & Opinion Washington Extra – Syria slap Iranian dissidents and a U.S. dilemma Related Topics World » Syria » Related Video Under fire in Syria Sat, Apr 30 2011 1 / 5 EDITOR'S NOTE: PICTURE TAKEN ON GUIDED GOVERNMENT TOUR A supporter of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad holds aloft a photograph of the president at Hamidiya market in Damascus April 30, 2011. Credit: Reuters/Khaled al-Hariri By Khaled Yacoub Oweis AMMAN | Tue May 3, 2011 11:29am EDT AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian security forces swept into the coastal city of Banias on Tuesday, a protest leader said, taking control of another urban center from demonstrators challenging the authoritarian rule of President Bashar al-Assad. "They moved into the main market area. The army has sealed the northern entrance and security forces (sealed) the south," Anas al-Shughri told Reuters. "They armed Alawite villages in the hills overlooking Banias and we are now facing militias from the east," he said. Assad, a member of the minority Alawite sect whose family has ruled majority Sunni Muslim Syria for 41 years, is pursuing a violent crackdown on six weeks of protests which began with demands for greater freedoms and now seek his overthrow. Germany and Britain said they were seeking the imposition of European Union sanctions against Syrian leaders -- after a U.S. announcement of sanctions last week -- and France said Assad should be among the targets for sanctions. "The Syrian government's continuing brutal actions leave the European Union no choice but to press firmly ahead with targeted sanctions against the regime," Germany's Deputy Foreign Minister Werner Hoyer said. Last week Assad sent tanks and soldiers into the southern city of Deraa, where the uprising broke out on March 18. Syrian rights groups say more than 560 civilians have been killed by security forces since the start of the unrest. Activists said arrests continued across Syria on Tuesday. Speaking from Egypt, Ammar Qurabi, head of the National Organization of Human Rights in Syria, said the latest wave of detentions had snared more than 1,000 people. International condemnation of the crackdown has intensified since the Deraa assault, which revived memories of the 1982 repression of an armed Islamist uprising in the city of Hama by Assad's father, President Hafez al-Assad. "Syria should not go through another massacre like Hama. We have reminded them of this," Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, who has sent envoys to Damascus and spoken to Assad several times during the unrest, told Turkey's A-TV channel. Israel, which has relied on Assad and his father to keep their front line quiet for nearly four decades -- despite Israel's occupation of the Golan Heights and Syria's support for militants opposed to Israel -- said Assad was losing his grip. "I believe Assad is approaching the moment in which he will lose his authority. The growing brutality is pushing him into a corner, the more people are killed, the less chance Assad has to come out of it," Defense Minister Ehud Barak said. "POINT OF NO RETURN" The International Crisis Group said the situation in Syria "is quickly going beyond the point of no return. By denouncing all forms of protest as sedition, and dealing with them through escalating violence, the regime is closing the door on any possible honorable exit to a deepening national crisis." In Banias, a Mediterranean coast city that has witnessed some of the most persistent protests, Shughri said armed plainclothes security men had deployed in the market street and were making arrests. Authorities have described mostly Sunni Banias as a "center of Salafist terrorism." Shughri denied residents had weapons and said youths carrying sticks were manning roadblocks, facing off against armed forces who spread out in the area. Banias city center has been under the control of demonstrators since, according to residents, Assad loyalists known as "al-shabbiha" opened fire on April 10 after a protest demanding the "overthrow of the regime." Six civilians were killed, according to residents and human rights campaigners. Authorities said at the time an armed group had ambushed a patrol near Banias, killing nine soldiers. Foreign media are restricted from reporting in Syria, but residents of the southern city of Deraa told Reuters by telephone that security forces were still making arrests. "They are still dragging anyone who is less than 40 years of age to the Deraa stadium where they have held hundreds, including several women, in the last week without shelter," said Abu Muhammad, a resident. Residents said conditions were worsening in the city, especially in the old Balad district. "In the Balad area the stench of dead corpses is still everywhere," said Abu Wadah. Officials say the army stormed Deraa in response to appeals from residents, and blame the violence on armed Islamist groups. They say most of those killed have been police and soldiers. The Red Cross called on Syria to grant immediate safe access to people wounded and those being detained by the authorities. Wissam Tarif of the human rights Organization Insan said the Damascus suburbs of Zabadani and Madaya had been without communication for five days. "Military and security men have been raiding houses" since early on Monday, he said. The Interior Ministry offered an amnesty to protesters who surrender to security forces, saying people who carried guns, attacked security forces or "spread lies" would be spared punishment if they hand themselves over by May 15. It also urged them to supply information about "saboteurs, terrorists and weapons caches." (Additional reporting by Suleiman al-Khalidi in Amman, Yara Bayoumy and Mariam Karouny in Beirut, Ece Toksabay in Ankara, Brian Rohan in Berlin and Alexandria Sage in Paris; writing by Dominic Evans; editing by Janet Lawrence) World Syria Tweet this Share this Link this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story directly or with relevant tangential information. We try to block comments that use offensive language, all capital letters or appear to be spam, and we review comments frequently to ensure they meet our standards. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. Comments (0) Be the first to comment on reuters.com. Add yours using the box above. Social Stream (What's this?) © Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters Editorial Editions: Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom United States Reuters Contact Us Advertise With Us Help Journalism Handbook Archive Site Index Video Index Reader Feedback Mobile Newsletters RSS Podcasts Widgets Your View Analyst Research Thomson Reuters Copyright Disclaimer Privacy Professional Products Professional Products Support Financial Products About Thomson Reuters Careers Online Products Acquisitions Monthly Buyouts Venture Capital Journal International Financing Review Project Finance International PEhub.com PE Week FindLaw Super Lawyers Attorney Rating Service Reuters on Facebook Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests. NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.

Other News on Tuesday, 3 May 2011
Pakistan vital to defeating al Qaeda: White House |
Bin Laden wife killed in raid: White House |
Inconceivable Osama had no support in Pakistan: White House |
Israel says bin Laden killing triumph for democracies |
100 missing after boat capsizes in Congo: radio |
Jordan hopes bin Laden's death ends terror era |
Nortel gets court nods for Google's stalking horse |
Sony freebies help soothe anger at data breach |
Eerie links between Harry Potter, bin Laden |
Michael Jackson doctor trial delayed to September |
Navy Seal book spurs Hollywood interest |
NBC news to name Curry as co-host of Today
Osama bin Laden movie project already in works |
Hard Rock memorabilia exhibiiton to tour U.S |
Beaver maker Jodie Foster sees more directing ahead |
Mariah Carey renews wedding vows after giving birth |
Lawyer for money manager Ken Starr pleads guilty |
Pakistan says not part of U.S. operation to kill bin Laden |
Twenty-five fighters killed, wounded near Afghan-Pakistan border |
Canada's Conservatives score massive election win |
Bin Laden killing will embarrass authorities: Pakistani media |
Fighting rages in Libya's Western Mountains |
Searchers find second Air France crash black box |
U.S. commandos knew bin Laden likely would die |
U.N. chief Ban hails bin Laden death as watershed |
Sony says 25 million more accounts at risk in new data hack |
SK Tel, KT suspend iPad 2 online sale less than week after debut |
Twitter seeks to buy TweetDeck for up to $50 million |
South Korea police probe Google over location data collection |
Twitter users ignore ban on posting Canada results |
Apple shares shrug off rebalancing of Nasdaq-100 |
NetLogic revenue misses on China weakness; shares fall |
Appeals court upholds Phil Spector murder conviction |
Idol host Ryan Seacrest preps music show for NBC |
Rick Springfield arrested for drunk driving in Malibu |
Kirsten Dunst to star in Bachelorette comedy |
Judge Judy star to remain on show through 2015 |
Pakistan has bin Laden wife, children in custody |
Pakistan says had no knowledge of U.S. bin Laden raid |
Afghan Taliban say insufficient evidence bin Laden is dead |
Pakistan, U.S. vow to fight terrorism after bin Laden death |
U.S. may release photos of bin Laden burial at sea |
UK arrests five in terror alert near nuclear site |
Syrian forces crack down on protesters in Banias |
No proof Pakistanis knew bin Laden location: U.S. |
Apple updates iMac line with new processors |
RIM says Bing to be preferred search, maps app |
Nokia's chairman to step down next year |
RIM bringing Angry Birds to PlayBook |
MetroPCS boosts customer growth |
North Korea hackers behind attack on S.Korea bank: prosecutors |
Renren's audit committee chair quits ahead of IPO |
Prince William back at work after royal wedding |
New Orleans' Jazz Fest thrives, despite competition |
Book of Mormon leads with Tony nominations |
Eerie links between Harry Potter, bin Laden |
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights

USD EUR - 1 year graph		BlogMeter 1.01