Yahoo: Assad predicts disaster if West meddles in Syria

[bird_1972]

I wonder how long before Turkey takes leadership on this to contain the chaos.

Also, best for Israel to stay on the sidelines (even though they share a border) and let events take their course. In fact if anything, should some kind of Libya-like situation develop where there is an armed resistence to Assad's regime, Israel could do well by providing humanitarian support for the opposition. Could go a long way towards gaining goodwill with a neighbor that has been a harsh advesary to date.

[visionary]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middle...842696136.html

Arab League extends Syria deadline

The Arab League has offered the government of President Bashar al-Assad three more days to stop violence or else face economic sanctions as a previous deadline for Damascus to act passed on Wednesday.

The announcement came after the league's foreign ministers had met in the Moroccan capital Rabat to decide their next move after Assad ignored the ultimatum issued on Saturday by a majority of the league.

The league is "giving the Syrian government three days to stop the bloody repression" of its civilian population, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani, the Qatari foreign minister, told a news conference after the meeting in Rabat.

"But if Damascus does not agree to co-operate with the League, sanctions will be adopted against Syria."

The Qatari foreign minister said that Arab patience with Assad's government was running out, but that it still had time.

"I don't want to speak about last chances so [Syria] doesn't think it is being given an ultimatum, but we are almost at the end of the line," he said.

The league also said it would send international observers to Syria, but only if Syria agreed to the plan.

Meanwhile, Syrian opposition groups said 14 soldiers and 17 civilians were killed in violence on Wednesday.

[visionary]

http://blogs.aljazeera.com/liveblog/Syria

9 hours 22 min ago

Reuters - Syrian authorities have said they will prosecute anyone who attacks foreign embassies in Syria, state media said on Thursday, after a series of attacks on foreign missions in retaliation for the Arab League's suspension of Damascus.

An Interior Ministry statement quoted by the SANA news agency said authorities would meet their international commitments to protect diplomatic property.

"The ministry warns anyone who tries to violate the sanctity of diplomatic buildings, or tries to enter or cause any damage to these missions, that (authorities) will take appropriate legal measures against perpetrators including arrest and trial," it said.

9 hours 21 min ago

Associated Press - Activists say Syrian troops have made sweeping arrests in Hama province as President Bashar al-Assad faces a growing challenge to his rule.

Thursday's raids took place in the restive Hama province, where Syrian army defectors attacked an army checkpoint the previous day. Details on the raids were not immediately clear.

9 hours 16 min ago

Reuters - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday that an attack by Syrian army defectors on an intelligence complex resembled civil war and reiterated Moscow's call for talks between Syria's government and its opponents.

He said such talks should take place at the Arab League headquarters.

"We see television reports that say some new force, the so-called Free Syrian Army I believe, organised an attack on a government building... belonging to the Syrian armed forces. This is already completely similar to real civil war," Lavrov told reporters after a meeting with Indian Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna in Moscow.

9 hours 11 min ago - Syria

Associated Press - Morocco's Foreign Ministry has withdrawn its ambassador from Syria, citing attacks on the country's embassy in Damascus.

The move announced late on Wednesday comes after Morocco hosted an Arab League meeting in which foreign ministers from the organisation upheld a suspension of Syria from the body and gave it three days to end its crackdown on protesters.

2 hours 22 min ago

The security chief at the Arab League told Al Jazeera sources that the pan-Arab bloc's Secretary General Nabil el-Araby received death threats on his personal mobile and his home telephone, suspected to be from Syrians affiliated with the Assad government.

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/#!/CFKlebergTT

Death toll in Syria rises to 14 today including two children, activists tell me. Hama subs:5 Idlib:4 Homs:2 DeirEzzor:2 Raqqa:1 1 hour ago

Four defectors among those killed in Syria today, according to LCC activists.
1 hour ago

As Syria counts today's killed death toll rises to 19, according to LCC activists. Among them 2 children, 4 defected soldiers. 19 minutes ago

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/#!/Thanku4theAnger

Wow! Free Syria Army ends statement w/ Libyan resistance hero Omar Mukhtar's famous quote" We never Surrender, We win or Die" is.gd/kd2nyI 1 hour ago

At Intelligence HQ in Idleb next to Baath party HQ, Free Syria Army Hamza Khatib Brigade clashes w/ B forces who suffered heavy casualties 2 hours ago

Free Syria Army Muawya ibn Abu Sufyan Brigade clashed w/ B forces for 20mins in Kiswa City at bridge checkpoint. Number of B forces killed 9 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/richardengelnbc

syria army shells villages after defectors attack.
28 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/British_Syrian

Reports of many deaths today, but only 22 have been confirmed: 8 in Homs 5 in Hama 5 in Idlib 2 in Deir... http://fb.me/16XNzK2Ur 52 minutes ago

(That adds up to 20....)

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/#!/DMcCaffreySKY

French foreign minister says the UN Security Council must act over Syria 8 hours ago

http://twitter.com/#!/CFKlebergTT

Syria, security forces kill 17 people today, LCC activists say. Claim 4 children among dead. Daraa:8 Hama:4 Damascus subs:3 Homs:2 1 hour ago

"Huge shelling" since this morning in Daraa, Syria LCC activists tell me. Internet and phones cut. 46 minutes ago

"More than 20 fall injured" in MaaretAlNouman, Idlib as security forces disperse protests, Syria LCC activists say. 45 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/BBCKimGhattas

US officials pushing back against reports of buffer zones on Syria border w/ Turkey+Jordan, say it's 'nonsense'. Things cud change. 1 hour ago

http://twitter.com/#!/LibyaIsFree

Syrian banner: "Province of Idlib will be the new Benghazi" http://pic.twitter.com/J7fYhUms 21 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/DavidKenner

Russian warship set to enter Syrian waters to send a message against foreign intervention. Russians not good at irony. http://bit.ly/s3xqSy 33 minutes ago

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,...world-4025-rdf

Arab League risks Russian wrath by approaching West over Syria

Britain and France have been approached by senior Arab League officials about taking the lead in a Libya-style contact group which would coordinate the next phases of action against President Bashar al-Assad, and plan for what many regard as his inevitable departure from power.

It is widely believed that the approach to Britain and France has considerable support within the Arab League with many states feeling that the Europeans' proximity to the Middle East and their greater understanding of its complexities would make them better leaders of such a contact group than the United States. King Abdullah of Jordan presented the case to British Prime Minister David Cameron during talks on Tuesday.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe appeared to take France's first steps toward assuming a leadership position by calling on the UN Security Council to take action against Syria after meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Ahmet Davutoglu, on Friday.

One senior Arab diplomatic source told Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper on Friday that Syria's neighbors held too many different views to coordinate action effectively and that the West had to take the lead in formulating a robust international response should Syria collapse. "Leaving it all up to us, you are going to get a lot of shenanigans," the source is quoted as saying. "If you need a team captain on this you have got to go to the West."

However such a move would be risky and controversial. "The Arab League would be taking a risk if it tries to involve Britain and France in any contact group, particularly after their high-profile role in initiating regime change in Libya," Dr. Kristian Ulrichsen, a Middle East and North Africa expert at the London School of Economics, told Deutsche Welle.

---------- Post added November-18th-2011 at 01:59 PM ----------

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Mid...#axzz1dyW17GnR

Arabs reject Syria amendments to observer mission: diplomat

BEIRUT: The Arab League has turned down last-minute amendments by Damascus on a deal to allow an observer mission into Syria, diplomats told The Daily Star Friday.

The diplomats, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the changes requested by Syria – that human rights activists be excluded from the observer mission and only civilians working for Arab governments take part – were rejected by the regional organization.

Earlier Friday, reports surfaced saying that Syria had agreed “in principle” to allow an observer mission into the country but requested several amendments.

“We call on the Syrian opposition to avoid recourse to an armed insurrection,” French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe told a joint news conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Ankara, Turkey. “A civil war would of course be a true catastrophe.”

Asked about the possibility of foreign intervention, Juppe said: “This would have to be within the framework of the U.N. Security Council.”

I think a "civil war" is pretty much inevitable at this point, unless Assad and a lot of his cronies leave power very soon.

I also dont really agree with France and the US' position that Syrians shouldn't be allowed to fight back or defend themselves. (not sure about going out and attacking places though right now)
I do get that they worry about it giving legitamacy to the regime's actions, but I think the Syrian people know what is going on.
It's not really fair to tell them to stand back and let the regime plow them down for protesting.

(I do like that the US and France especially have been consistently very critical of the regime, since deciding that it was time for Bashar to go at least)

[visionary]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middle...=MasterAccount

Britain to meet with Syrian opposition

William Hague, the British foreign minister, has announced that he would meet with Syrian opposition representatives in London next week in an intensification of contact with opponents of President Bashar al-Assad.

The Syrian opposition members would also meet senior officials of Prime Minister David Cameron at his Downing Street office, the foreign ministry said on Friday.

It added that Frances Guy, the former British ambassador to Lebanon, had been appointed to coordinate relations with the Syrian opposition.

The delegation would include members of the opposition Syrian National Council and the National Co-ordination Committee for Democratic Change, in meetings expected to take place on Monday, a Foreign Office source said.

"We have been having regular contacts with a variety of figures in the Syrian opposition for several months. We are now intensifying these," the Foreign Office said.

[visionary]

Not sure about the accuracy of this, I haven't heard it elsewhere:

http://twitter.com/#!/Thanku4theAnger

Free Syria Army Omar AlKhatab Brigade in AlQasir destroy 3 armoured vehicles & attacked many checkpoints w/ over 50 B forces killed 4 hours ago

http://twitter.com/#!/AJELive

At least nine people killed in Syria today, rights groups say http://aje.me/uyrNeA 3 hours ago

http://twitter.com/#!/Reuters

Death toll rises in Syria despite Arab League deadline http://reut.rs/s5Pnar 46 minutes ago

Fourteen civilians were killed in a crackdown on dissent against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad on Saturday, activists said, despite a deadline by the Arab League for Damascus to take steps to end the bloodshed.

http://twitter.com/#!/MahirZeynalov

Turkish diplomats say any buffer zone under Turkish watch will also be a no fly zone. 31 minutes ago

(time to take a lunch break)

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/#!/Tripolitanian

Arab League gives Assad 2 more days to kill ppl, but that's IT! anymore and they will send him a strongly worded warning. 11 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/zaidbenjamin

Urgent: Nabil al-Arabi's trip to UAE was behind extending the Arab League deadline for Syria till Monday night - Diplomats 13 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/LeShaque

Dear Arab League, ARE YOU ****ING KIDDING ME?!?! 17 minutes ago

I demand the SNC put out a letter tomorrow severely slamming the Arab League and holding it responsible for the continued bloodshed.10 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/KareemLailah

26 martyrs in Syria today 14 minutes ago

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/#!/DamascusTweets

Urgent: Huge explosion just hit central Damascus minutes ago! Reason is unknown!29 minutes ago

Breaking: More explosions and sounds of gunfire at the center of Damascus right now. Probably it's an attack by defectors! 12 minutes ago

Breaking: it is believed that the explosion source in central Damascus came from the HeadQuarters of the Baath party! 3 minutes ago


Several RPG rockets were shot by the SFA at the Baath Party building in the Mazra'a neighbourhood at the center of Damascus 3 minutes ago

---------- Post added November-19th-2011 at 10:21 PM ----------

http://twitter.com/#!/ZainSyr

the Free Syrian Army has just attack the Baath Party building in Mazra'a neighbourhood in the middle of Damascus with RBJ shells ! 6 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/KareemLailah

Breaking: FSA is attacking Baath party building in Mazraa neighbourhood in the heart of Damascus now. 2 minutes ago

BREAKING: Defected soldiers are attacking Baath party building, in the heart of Damascus, few meters far from Assad palace. 50 seconds ago

[Larry]

Gee, that should calm things down.

[visionary]

Gee, that should calm things down.

That would assume that people there want things "calmed down".
The only ones who want that are Russia, Assad, and possibly the Arab league.

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/#!/KareemLailah

P.S. FSA didn't declare the responsibility of the attack in central Damascus. just a personal guess so far. 2 hours ago

http://twitter.com/#!/BSyria

This Baath HQ that was attacked is only meters away from Damascus citadel. It is really in the heart of the capital. 1 hour ago

http://twitter.com/#!/calperryAJ

"residents" tweeting security forces deployed to Ba'ath party HQ in Damascus Syria. Here we go: fight has arrived at Assad's door. 56 minutes ago

http://twitter.com/#!/NickClarkAlJaz

Reuters report Damascus attack happened b4 dawn, building mostly empty, square now blocked off by police. Seems to be message to Govt. 31 minutes ago

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/#!/CFKlebergTT

Today Syria's security forces kill at least ten people, according to LCC activists.
Homs:5
Idlib:4
Bokamal:1
5 minutes ago

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/#!/AJELive

Syria Live Blog: Death toll from today's violence in Syria rises to 14, according to activists http://aje.me/jlCqCU 1 hour ago

http://twitter.com/#!/Reuters

Britain condemns Assad before Syria opposition talks http://reut.rs/vFHMDL 1 hour ago

http://twitter.com/#!/MicahZenko

New interview w/ Free Syria Army leader. US told us "not to expect a new Benghazi + asked us to end the violence." http://bit.ly/uGUr0s 1 hour ago