Yahoo: Assad predicts disaster if West meddles in Syria

[visionary]

http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=382935

Turkish journalist missing in Syria

A Turkish reporter named Aziz Akyavas who works for the NBC TV news network has been missing in Syria since Wednesday.

Reportedly, Akyavas went missing in Syria and the NBC has not been able to reach him for four days. Akyavas was reporting from the region.

Along with Akyavas, NBC is unable to reach its Middle East bureau chief Richard Engel, who was also reporting from inside Syria.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8BG0FK20121217

Foreign nerves limit Syria rebel arms, Assad's arsenals raided

Syrian rebel success in capturing government armories is rendering increasingly irrelevant Western efforts to limit supplies from abroad and avoid sophisticated arms reaching Islamist militants.

Western nations, particularly the United States, remain highly nervous of weapons falling into the wrong hands, while even Saudi Arabia and Qatar - by far the two most enthusiastic rebel backers - appear to have cut back support in recent weeks.

Opposition forces clearly hope the creation last week of a new unified military council and the growing number of foreign powers recognizing them as the legitimate government of Syria will lead to swiftly renewed support and new arms.

Even without that, however, the capture of a growing number of bases from forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad increasingly obviates the need for outside support. Meanwhile, resentment simmers over what many rebels see as yet more broken promises.

http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/s...orists-in-camp

Syria says Palestinians must not shelter 'terrorists' in camp

BEIRUT, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem told U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Palestinians should not offer "shelter or assistance to terrorist groups" in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus, state television said on Monday.

His comments came after Ban's spokesman said the secretary-general was concerned at reports of an air strike by President Bashar al-Assad's forces on Yarmouk on Sunday in which activists said 25 people were killed.

Syrian troops backed by tanks gathered on Monday outside Yarmouk, scene of clashes between Palestinians loyal to Assad and rebels supported by Palestinian fighters, activists said.

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/arti...a-s-opposition

Albania Recognises Syrian Opposition

“Albania calls on the United Nations and NATO to take all the necessary measures to stop the barbarian massacre being carried out by Bashar Al-Assad and his regime against the Syrian people,” Prime Minister Sali Berisha said in a statement.

The government announced that it would give $100,000 in aid and send medical staff to help Syrian refugees in Turkey.

https://twitter.com/SyrianSmurf

Just now...11 soldiers defect from the Hamdiyeh base south of MaaratAlNouman Idlib
7:21 PM Dec 16

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters destroy a tank in zamalka http://youtu.be/wmByPbIQW4o
2:49 AM

resistance fighters have destroyed brigade 34 base in daraa & killed & arrested all the troops who were there
2:56 AM

resistance fighters liberated a military checkpoint in athraya (al-raqqah- salamiyah road)
3:06 AM

resistance fighters liberated al-furat hospital in deirezzor city http://youtu.be/yMbDGVfed38
3:37 AM

10 troops have defected in khan shaykhoun
5:03 AM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

just in: resistance fighters have liberated the hasraya military checkpoint in kafr zita (hama)
6:08 AM

resistance fighters have liberated an officers' building in the town of halfaya in hama
6:50 AM

resistance fighters have liberated a military barracks in the town of jamleh in daraa
7:42 AM

resistance fighters have destroyed a tank near al-yarmouk camp in damascus
7:50 AM

update: 4 tanks were destroyed today in the town of halfaya in hama
8:51 AM

[ixcuincle]

http://twitter.com/AndrewSiciliano/s...26412489535489

RT @romenesko: NBC News foreign correspondent Richard Engel has gone missing in Syria. gaw.kr/ZEocJF

Hopefully he is found

He does do a lot of good work in the Middle East

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/AndrewSiciliano/s...26412489535489


Hopefully he is found

He does do a lot of good work in the Middle East

I was surprised to read about Engel missing this morning.
He's been working there on and off for a while now.


I wonder if this is in reference to him or not:

https://twitter.com/jeremyscahill

When the family/employer of a missing journalist asks media to do a blackout, that should be respected.
12:30 PM

There are processes going on that other media are not privy to and you should respect that. It could mean life/death for the missing journo
12:32 PM

The desire to get a "scoop" should be put in check when there are very good reasons--namely the lives of our colleagues-- to stay quiet
12:36 PM

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8BG0K820121217

Palestinians flood into Lebanon after Damascus fighting

Hundreds of Palestinians refugees living in Syria flooded into Lebanon on Monday after clashes raged between Palestinian factions loyal to and opposed to President Bashar al-Assad in a district of Damascus.

A Reuters witness at the border said they came in buses and cars piled high with belongings. A Lebanese security source said the refugees from Damascus' Yarmouk Camp suburb had tried to flee on Sunday but the road was blocked by fighting.

Opposition activists said Syrian fighter jets bombed Yarmouk on Sunday, killing at least 25 people sheltering in a mosque. They said troops and tanks were gathered outside the camp on Monday, and clashes inside continued.

http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetai...?newsId=301446

German troops arrive in Turkey as part of Patriot deployment

Several hundred German troops who will work on the deployment of the Patriot aid defense system in Turkey arrived in the southern province of Adana on Monday.

Sources told the Anatolia news agency that a Turkish Air Force cargo jet carrying the German troops landed at an airport in Adana on Monday.

The German troops will spend Monday night at the İncirlik Air Base before proceeding to the province of Kahramanmaraş on Tuesday morning.

https://twitter.com/SyrianSmurf

An FSA commander who's first son was just born yesterday was martyred south of MaaratAlNouman today at the Hamdiyeh base.
7:58 AM

A Libyan FSA fighter was also martyred when he tried to save the FSA commander.
7:58 AM

Never-before performed FSA operation at the Hamdiyeh checkpoint!!
8:29 AM

The FSA performed an op. at 3 checkpoints SOUTH of the Hamdiyeh checkpoint between KhanSheikhoon and MaaratAlNouman in Idlib
8:30 AM

They used knives primarily in a stealth attack on 3 checkpoints. Killing ~40 regime soldiers. 2 FSA soldiers were martyred.
8:30 AM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

jabhat al-nusrah fighters have liberated the airforce defense base in handarat (aleppo) & arrested +15 assad troops
9:04 AM

resistance fighters liberated the headquarters of ahmad jibril's organization in al-yarmouk camp in damascus http://youtu.be/CnDfr4hPjek
9:13 AM

from al-furqan brigades: resistance fighters control al-yarmouk camp in damascus http://youtu.be/zP9Z4nFgJYg
11:26 AM

update: assad's thugs have executed 13 people in the refugee camp in daraa
12:35 PM

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?p...17848338242310

Damascus: Yarmouk Camp: The Free Syrian Army gains complete control of the camp

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?p...17848338242310

Local Coordination Committees in Syria

The LCC managed to document 158 martyrs for Monday, among them 11 women and 9 children: 50 martyrs were reported in Damascus and its Suburbs, 38 in Daraa (including 5 due to the shelling of Tafas and 13 who were field-executed in the refugees camp), 31 in Aleppo, 13 in Hama (including 4 in Kafr Zeita and 3 in Helfaya), 15 in Idlib, 7 in Deir Ezzor and 4 in Homs

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...=1#post9046975
43,168 people killed so far in Syria


I'm going to the Bahamas for a few days without my computer, so there may not be many or any upates the rest of the week.

[visionary]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...ape-route.html

Syrian rebels cut off Bashar al-Assad’s escape route

Abu Yassin, resident in one of the dozens of Sunni villages in Jebel Akrad drove his vehicle, the only one on the road, passed the carcases of burnt out tanks, abandoned government checkpoints and row upon row of empty villages.

In the distance war was raging: government helicopters circled over front line towns, dropping barrels filled with TNT and lethal metal debris on buildings below with deafening effect. Rebel fighters shot back with anti-aircraft guns hidden amid narrow buildings or in nearby forests that cover the mountainsides.

It is here; in this mountainous Mediterranean coastline of Syria's Latakia province that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad may well hope to make his last stand.

For centuries, this was his and his people's homeland, the verdant terrain belonging to his minority Alawite sect. Now it is this enclave comprising the coastal cities of Latakia and Tartous and mountains to the east that the many in the President's his sect see as their and his last chance of making a breakaway Alawite state to protect them against the Sunni majority rebellion.

But, travelling across the terrain this week The Daily Telegraph discovered that the rebels have already won control of much of his land, making the vision of a safe haven state – or a at leats a defendable one – more pipe dream than project.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisf...ope?CMP=twt_gu

War is raging in Aleppo but in a classroom 40km away, there are grounds for hope

I had come in search of families displaced by Syria's war. But when I entered Qabbasin secondary school I was surprised to discover lessons were going on. Two months ago head Nasar Mamar decided to reopen.

There was fighting going on down the road in Aleppo. But Qabbasin, some 40km away, was comparatively safe – safe, if you ignored the regime jets flying overhead. "We need Syria to be an educated country. We should not be afraid," Mamar explained, taking me on a tour of his classrooms.

Downstairs I found 30 boys in the middle of an English lesson. Written on the blackboard was some useful vocabulary: "library" and "explorer", and examples of the present continuous tense – "I am eating. I am reading" – with a neat translation in Arabic. Their teacher was 30-year-old Abu Hassan. Hassan said he had fled from Aleppo. He was now working as an unsalaried volunteer. "I want to teach. It's my job," he said.

https://twitter.com/Basma_

Opposition fighters declare Helfaya in Hama province a 'liberated town'. The town is 25km away from Hama city.
1:25 AM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters have liberated the town of halfaya in hama
1:16 AM

resistance fighters liberated a military checkpoint in athraya (al-raqqah) http://youtu.be/8_wzjgJyBmY
1:27 AM

resistance fighters seize a tank in halfaya http://youtu.be/u78PZCLOypM
1:33 AM

8 troops have defected from brigade 137 in deirezzor
1:46 AM

https://twitter.com/MahirZeynalov

Turkish reporter working for the NBC was released, entered into Turkey.
2:10 AM

[ixcuincle]

http://twitter.com/jonkarl/statuses/280992605318295552

Great news RT @WillieGeist: We are so relieved that our friend @RichardEngel has been freed in Syria. He is unharmed. worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/…

[visionary]

http://twitter.com/jonkarl/statuses/280992605318295552

Just saw the news now. Held five days by pro-regime militia that used a lot of psychological torture on them apparently.

[visionary]

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/article..._beat_on_earth

The Most Dangerous Beat on Earth

Twenty-eight journalists have been killed in Syria this year, making the country the world's deadliest place to be a reporter, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Nearly half of all the journalists killed worldwide in 2012 were slain in Syria, including top foreign correspondents like Marie Colvin of the London Times.

Another celebrated journalist, Anthony Shadid of the New York Times, died in February of an allergy attack during his trek out of the country. NBC's Richard Engel and his crew, no strangers to hostile reporting territory, narrowly escaped being hostages of the Syrian regime this week. Freelance reporter Austin Tice remains missing. Is Syria just too hazardous for journalists? We asked four veteran observers of the conflict to tell us what it's like to cover the riskiest beat in the world.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/19/wo...w-nytimes&_r=0

Russia Sends Warships Toward Syria for Possible Evacuation

Russia sent warships to the eastern Mediterranean Sea on Tuesday, the Defense Ministry announced, in what appeared to be preparation for a possible evacuation of Russian citizens from Syria.

Russian officials began formulating plans during the summer for an evacuation, but have delayed announcements, analysts say, to avoid signaling a loss of confidence in President Bashar al-Assad, a longtime strategic ally. Moscow staunchly opposes international intervention in Syria and has blocked United Nations Security Council resolutions meant to force Mr. Assad from power. Officials have repeatedly said that Russia’s position has not changed.

However, Moscow has signaled in recent days that it sees Mr. Assad’s forces losing ground, and that it is beginning to prepare for a chaotic transition period. One immediate concern is the large number of Russian citizens scattered across Syria, as a result of decades of intermarriage and longstanding economic ties.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-midd...36#TWEET458254

NBC reporter Richard Engel freed from Syria captors

NBC News chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel said his team was held by a Shia militia group thought to be loyal to the Syrian government.

The team was captured shortly after crossing into north-west Syria on Thursday, escorted by rebel groups.

They were blindfolded, bound, and subjected to mock executions, NBC said.

"We weren't physically beaten or tortured," said Engel, who has lived in the Middle East since 1996 and speaks fluent Arabic.

"A lot of psychological torture, threats of being killed. They made us choose which one of us would be shot first and when we refused, there were mock shootings."

He was told the kidnappers wanted to exchange him and his crew for four Iranian and two Lebanese prisoners being held by Syrian rebels.

"They captured us in order to carry out this exchange," Engel said.

"They were talking openly about their loyalty to the government."

Lors of news from Hama today.
Around 13 towns liberated overall.
A lot may be due to Assad pulling forces out of Hama towards Damascus and Latakia/Tartous

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters have liberated al-ghirbal military checkpoint in kafr naboudah in hama. the town is free
5:43 AM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of kafr zita in hama
10:51 AM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of karnaz in hama
10:52 AM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of latamneh in hama
10:53 AM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-zakat in hama
10:54 AM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters have liberated the town of hamamiyat in hama
10:55 AM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-arba`in in hama
10:55 AM

resistance fighters destroyed 2 tanks near the town of taibat al-imam in hama
10:58 AM

resistance fighters control the main road between al-rastan & hama city
1:47 PM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-salhabiyah al-gharbiyah in al-raqqah
4:43 PM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of tal malah in hama countryside
7:09 PM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-jalamah in hama countryside
7:16 PM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-jubbayn in hama countryside
7:19 PM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-mughayr in hama countryside
7:21 PM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-suqaylabiyah (google: skilbieh) in hama countryside
7:38 PM

https://twitter.com/AmalHanano

Richard Engel: "If it weren't for Ahram al-Sham I might be dead now."
9:58 PM

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?p...17848338242310

Local Coordination Committees in Syria

With the end of Tuesday, the Local Coordination Committees were able to confirm 128 martyrs, among them 11 children and 9 women. 42 martyrs fell in Damascus and Damascus Suburbs, among them 4 martyrs in Tal Maneen, 21 martyrs fell in Daraa, among them 5 that were executed publicly in the Naziheen Refugee Camp, 16 martyrs fell in Hama, 14 martyrs fell in Homs, among them 3 martyrs that were publicly executed in Al-Nuqeira, 13 martyrs fell in Aleppo, 12 martyrs fell in Idlib, 9 martyrs fell in Deir Ezzor, and 1 martyr fell in Hasakeh.

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...=1#post9046975
43,296 people killed so far in Syria

[visionary]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middle...854550740.html

UN launches $1.5bn appeal for Syria crisis

Syrian refugees could double in number to more than a million by June, the UN has warned.

Those fleeing the fighting need urgent aid, said the UN's humanitarian agency, as it on Wednesday launched an appeal for $1.5bn to help those both inside and outside Syria.

"The violence in Syria is raging across the country," Radhouane Nouicer, regional humanitarian co-ordinator for Syria, told reporters in Geneva.

"There are really no more safe areas where people can flee," he added. "The magnitude of this humanitarian crisis is undisputable."

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8BJ06B20121220

Al Qaeda grows powerful in Syria as endgame nears

Having seen its star wane in Iraq, al Qaeda has staged a comeback in neighbouring Syria, posing a dilemma for the opposition fighting to remove President Bashar al-Assad and making the West balk at military backing for the revolt.

The rise of al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, al-Nusra Front, which the United States designated a terrorist organisation last week, could usher in a long and deadly confrontation with the West, and perhaps Israel.

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters have liberated the town of taibat al-imam in hama countryside
12:57 PM

resistance fighters have liberated al-suyouf (the swords) square in deirezzor city
1:01 PM

resistance fighters destroyed a bmp vehicle & 2 tanks between al-zabadani & madaya
1:06 PM

resistance fighters destroyed a tank near the town of masmiyah in daraa
1:09 PM

resistance fighters damaged 3 tanks & seized 2 military vehicles near al-suyouf square in deirezzor city
1:12 PM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters have liberated al-rayhaniyah military checkpoint in damascus countryside
1:14 PM

resistance fighters attacked a military convoy near the town of al-houl (al-hasakah) & destroyed a tank.
2:12 PM

it isn't good for resistance fighters to enter hama city. it is easy for #assad forces to wipe out the city. liberate the countryside. i don't advise them to do that. they must learn a lesson from the mistakes in aleppo city. i know how many resistance fighters were killed there.
4:00 PM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of beserin in hama countryside
2:00 AM

resistance fighters destroyed the old al-hajar al-aswad school (al-suwaidah al-gharbiyah bridge, hama) where assad troops stayed
2:05 AM

https://twitter.com/omarsyria

Syrian TV presenter Ahmad Fakoury writes a defection letter thanking the FSA & Moussa Al-Omar & says regime killed his colleague Mohd Saeed.
2:20 AM

Huge news considering Mohammed Said was said to be killed by the FSA for his pro-regime stance.
2:21 AM

http://www.lccsyria.org/10692

Local Coordination Committees in Syria

By the end of Wednesday LCC could document 161 martyrs including 7 children and 3 women. 67 martyrs in Damascus and suburbs including 6 were field executed in Kafar Souseh, 50 in Aleppo including 40 in a car explosion in Marjeh neighborhood, 19 in Daraa, 8 in Hama, 8 in Deir Ezzor, 5 in Homs, 3 in Idlib and a martyr in Swaida

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...=1#post9046975
43,457 people killed so far in Syria

[visionary]

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/article...itics_is_local

All (Syrian) Politics Is Local

The noose is tightening around Syrian President Bashar al-Assad -- and he's beginning to realize it. After a week that saw the opposition's National Coalition win widespread international recognition and U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta sign orders to dispatch Patriot missiles to the Turkey-Syria border, the regime in Damascus gave the first sign that it was looking for a way out.

On Dec. 17, the Lebanese paper al-Akhbar published an interview with Syrian Vice President Farouq al-Sharaa, where he said that neither the regime nor the rebels could win militarily and called for a "historic settlement" between the warring parties. Iran, Assad's staunchest ally, also released a six-point plan that it said would promote national reconciliation.

There is reason to believe that the United States would look sympathetically on a negotiated transition. Washington faces a problem: It is looking to prevent extremists from filling the power vacuum in Syria -- it designated the jihadist group Jabhat al-Nusrah as a terrorist organization last week -- and a political settlement could be a step in that direction. But a deal cut in Damascus is no cure-all for Syria's ills: Even if an agreement is reached, most rebels groups are not about to let the Syrian army roll back into their towns.

The sprawling eastern province of Deir Ezzor, a larger rural region bordering Iraq, provides a case study in how armed groups -- even extremist ones -- work to establish a foothold in an area. In the case of jihadists like Jabhat al-Nusra, it also provides some hints for how they could be forced out. Jabhat al-Nusra's cadres currently coexist with local tribal leaders, who have taken up responsibility for maintaining law and order in the absence of the state. In the long run, however, there is no guarantee that these groups share the same ideology or long-term interests.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2012/12/2...f-missing.html

Letter from parents of missing journalist Austin Tice

An open letter to those holding our son, Austin Tice:

Our family is longing for the safe return of our cherished son and beloved brother Austin, who was taken captive while working as a journalist in Syria. So many things have happened in the more than 18 weeks he has been missing. We missed him terribly at the family gathering for the feast of Thanksgiving. We are a close-knit family, sharing so many memories and traditions. Now, as we prepare for the joyful celebration of Christmas, we desperately want our family to be whole. Our hearts are heavy to think his chair may once again be empty at our family table; we dread missing his great storytelling and contagious laugh.

Austin is the oldest of our seven children. The Tice kids are very close, and Austin’s absence is agonizing. Like children everywhere, they grew up loving, fussing, challenging and, most importantly, supporting one another. Austin is so proud to be the thoughtful mentor and protector of his sisters and brothers, encouraging them to dream big and work hard to make those dreams come true. He has set an example by never settling for less than excellence in himself.

http://news.yahoo.com/ap-source-syri...211555387.html

AP source: Syria again using Scud missiles on foes

The Obama administration says the Syrian government is continuing to fire Scud missiles at rebels and regime opponents as they make territorial gains.

A State Department official said Thursday that Washington was aware that the regime had used Scud missiles within the last few days, despite warnings from the U.S. and other nations not to escalate the crisis.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the information is classified. NATO and the Pentagon have previously confirmed that Scud missiles have been fired at the opposition.

Last week, defense officials said the regime fired the missiles from the Damascus area into northern Syria. At the time, one official estimated that the number of Scuds fired was more than a half-dozen.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics...pecific-cases/

Few Back U.S. Military Role in Syria – But Support Jumps in Specific Cases

While Americans broadly prefer to stay out of direct involvement in the conflict in Syria, support for U.S. military action soars in the event of a loss of control of its chemical weapons, the use of such weapons on the Syrian people or an attack on neighboring U.S. allies.

Most in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll also say they’d support the imposition of a no-fly zone over Syria, provided U.S. ground forces are not involved.

In general, 73 percent say the U.S. military should not get involved in the conflict. But almost exactly as many say they’d support U.S. military involvement if Syria were to lose control of its chemical weapons, as do 63 percent if the Assad regime used these banned weapons against its own people – an action that Barack Obama has warned would “cross a red line.”

Similarly, if Syrian forces were to attack nearby U.S. allies, 69 percent say they’d support U.S. military involvement. And regardless of any such specific provocation, 62 percent say they’d favor creation of a no-fly zone, provided no ground troops were used. (That may reflect the success of the no-fly zone over Libya, general preference for air vs. ground combat, or some combination of both.)

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/21/wo...seid=auto&_r=0

Syria Unleashes Cluster Bombs on Town, Punishing Civilians

The plane came in from the southeast late in the afternoon, releasing its weapons in a single pass. Within seconds, scores of finned bomblets struck and exploded on the homes and narrow streets of this small Syrian town.

After the screams and the desperate gathering of the victims, the staff at the local Freedom Hospital counted 4 dead and 23 wounded. All were civilians, doctors and residents said.

Many forms of violence and hardship have befallen Syria’s people as the country’s civil war has escalated this year. But the Syrian government’s attack here on Dec. 12 pointed to one of the war’s irrefutable patterns: the deliberate targeting of civilians by President Bashar al-Assad’s military, in this case with a weapon that is impossible to use precisely.

Syrians on both sides in this fight have suffered from the bloodshed and sectarian furies given dark license by the war. The victims of the cluster bomb attacks describe the tactic as collective punishment, a mass reprisal against populations that are with the rebels.

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

17 officers & troops have defected from regiment 93 in the countryside of al-raqqah
9:41 AM

resistance fighters have destroyed another tank in darayya (3 tanks today)
10:20 AM

resistance fighters liberated a brigade & a military checkpoint in dayr ba`lbah neighborhood in homs city
3:21 PM

resistance fighters destroyed a military checkpoint near khalid ibn al-walid mosque in dummar (damascus)
3:25 PM

resistance fighters killed many assad troops & destroyed a tank in latakia countryside (mount 45)
3:43 PM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

from ahrar al-sham brigades: liberation of a military base in khanasir in aleppo http://youtu.be/yNglglplngw
4:21 PM

jabhat al-nusrah blew up a military tank in al-huwaiqah neighborhood in deirezzor city
7:25 PM

resistance fighters destroyed a center for assad troops in latakia countryside (tower 45). +15 troops were killed & injured
7:31 PM

resistance fighters have liberated regiment 81 (damascus airport road). many assad troops were killed & arrested
8:40 PM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of zubaidah in al-qunaytirah
8:44 PM

http://www.lccsyria.org/10697

Local Coordination Committees in Syria

By the end of Thursday LCC could document 117 martyrs including 5 women and 9 children: 42 in Damascus and suburbs, 23 in Daraa including 6 were field executed in refugee camp and 5 in Izra’, 18 in Hama including 7 in Halfaya, 14 in Aleppo, 10 in Homs including 7 in Houla, 5 in Deir Ezzor and 5 in Idlib

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...=1#post9046975
43,574 people killed so far in Syria

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8AJ1FK20121221

Syrian rebels say will target Aleppo airport

Syrian rebels warned on Friday they will target the international airport of the northern city of Aleppo after firing at an airliner preparing to take off, the first direct attack on civilian a flight in the 21-month-old revolt.

Thursday's attack was another sign of the growing confidence of rebels who are also fighting an offensive in the central province of Hama, pursuing a string of territorial gains to try to cut army supply lines and pressure the capital Damascus to the south.

A rebel commander who gave his name as Khaldoun told Reuters by Skype that snipers from the Intelligence Armed Struggle Battalion, part of the Islamist Jundallah brigade, had hit the wheels of Syrian Airways flight RB201 on Thursday.

"Those were warning shots," he said, adding that the plane had been unable to take off. "We wanted to send a message to the regime that all their planes - military and civilian - are within our reach."

https://twitter.com/BreakingNews

NATO says it detected new launches of scud-type missiles in Syria on Thursday - @Reuters
4:42 AM

More: NATO Secretary General Rasmussen says regrettable Syria scud launches are acts of a 'desperate regime approaching collapse' - @Reuters
4:46 AM

https://twitter.com/IvanCNN

NATO Secretary General confirms & denounces new launch of Scud missiles in Syria, says missiles didn't hit Turkey, but pose potential threat
5:08 AM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters liberated latmin military checkpoint in hama countryside http://youtu.be/yZeWTL1dKac
8:55 AM

liberation of abu shafiq military checkpoint in hama countryside http://youtu.be/0l39KSpyxMk
9:13 AM

resistance fighters destroyed 2 tanks in the town of al-duwairiniyah (near ibn khaldoun hospital) in aleppo countryside
9:18 AM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-rayhan in damascus countryside
5:21 PM

resistance fighters have liberated 2 military checkpoints (al-siyasiyah & al-alam square) in the town of al-tabqa in al-raqqah
7:14 PM

http://www.lccsyria.org/10707

The LCC managed to document 169[179+] martyrs (including 11 children and 5 women), 58 martyrs were reported in Damascus and its Suburb (most of them were martyred in Yarmouk Camp, Hajar Aswan, Hamouria and Mouadhamiya), 39 martyrs in Hama, 24 martyrs in Daraa, 11 martyrs in Homs, 11 martyrs in Idlib and 1 martyr in Raqqa [Also from the previous report: 23 in Aleppo and 12 in Deiz Ezzor]

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...=1#post9046975
43,753 people killed so far in Syria

[visionary]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lara-s...?utm_hp_ref=tw

We've Lost Syria

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/1...tml?ref=topbar

Russia Won't Host Syria's Assad, Foreign Minister Says

Russia's foreign minister says Moscow would welcome any country's offer of a safe haven to Syrian President Bashar Assad, but underlined that Moscow itself has no intention of giving him shelter if he steps down.

Russia has repeatedly used its veto right along with China at the U.N. Security Council to protect its old ally from international sanctions, but it has increasingly sought to distance itself from Assad.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters late Friday that countries in the region he wouldn't name publicly had asked Russia to convey their offer of a safe passage to Assad. He said that Russia responded by telling them to go directly to Assad: "We replied: `What do we have to do with it? If you have such plans, you go straight to him.'"

Asked if Moscow could offer a refuge to Assad, Lavrov responded that "Russia has publicly said that it doesn't invite President Assad."

"If there is anyone willing to provide him guarantees, they are welcome!" Lavrov told reporters on board a plane returning from Brussels where he attended a Russia-EU summit. "We would be the first to cross ourselves and say: "Thank God, the carnage is over! If it indeed ends the carnage, which is far from certain."

http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-e...emium-1.489278

Tipping point in Syria edges closer as West sees signs of Assad's demise

For the past couple months, it's seemed as if everyone has been waiting on two dramatic developments in the Middle East - the long-delayed fall of Bashar Assad in Syria, and the eruption of a third intifada in the West Bank. Based on the events of recent weeks, it would seem the former is closer than the latter.

The most reliable evidence of Assad's deteriorating position was the firing of Scud missiles at rebel strongholds in Syria's north. In its bag of desperate measures, the Scud is the regime's penultimate resource, superseded only by the use of chemical and biological weapons against the opposition forces - which have not been tried because of the stern warnings issued by the international community. The Syrian army has already tried attacks by fighter planes, fuel-air explosives, artillery barrages and tank fire.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8BL07H20121222

Syria crisis envoy Brahimi to visit Damascus soon: source

International envoy Lakhdar Brahimi will visit Syria in the next few days and is expected to meet President Bashar al-Assad, government officials and some opposition factions, a source in the Arab League said.

The source, who asked not to be named, told Reuters no date for such a visit had been announced but said he expected it would be "during the coming few days".

A revolt against four decades of rule by Assad's family has now run for 21 months, killing more than 40,000 people.

"Lakhdar Brahimi's team does not want to announce the time of the visit too early, perhaps for logistical or security reasons," he said.

http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=32267

US - Russia reach agreement on al-Assad ouster: Opposition sources

I think there would be a lot more leaks and news about it if this were true.

http://img.ly/r6yS Dec 22 Syria civil war map. Opposition makes great strides in Hama, while attacks in Damascus are increasing
8:45 PM

https://twitter.com/Karybdamoid
https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters destroyed a military checkpoint in the town of al-shalyout (hama) & killed +40 assad troops
7:27 AM

resistance fighters have liberated a military checkpoint near shaizer bridge in hama
9:36 AM

resistance fighters have liberated brigade 135 near the town of afrin in aleppo
10:46 AM

resistance fighters destroyed 3 tanks in the town of morek in hama. a fierce war continues
10:48 AM

resistance fighters say they shot down a warplane in homs countryside
11:04 AM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters have entered regiment 131 near damascus airport
11:39 AM

a report says resistance fighters have killed brigadier general hikmat bashour, the military commander of regiment 131
11:54 AM

resistance fighters have liberated al-makabbat military checkpoint (near latamneh, hama)
12:12 PM

9 troops have defected from wadi al-dayf military base
4:49 PM

resistance fighters destroyed the military security compound & the administration building in nahiyat tal brak (al-hasakah)
5:16 PM

https://twitter.com/eman_cipation_

We just received news that one of the men we were in contact with in Homs was sniped and killed today. He was just videotaping :/
9:02 PM

All the communication buildings of Assad soldiers were captured by the FSA in Homs today!
9:16 PM

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?p...17848338242310

As Saturday drew to an end in Syria, the Local Coordinations Committees were able to document 143 martyrs, including 2 children and 3 women: 75 martyrs in Damascus and its suburbs (including 30 bodies that were found in Bahdaliya, 5 martyrs in Hamouriya, and 5 martyrs in Qaboun), 30 martyrs in Aleppo, 13 martyrs in Hama, 8 martyrs in Raqqa, 7 martyrs in Idlib, 5 martyrs in Daraa, 4 martyrs in Homs and one martyrs in Deir Ezzor.

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...=1#post9046975
43,896 people killed so far in Syria

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8BM07A20121223

Syria government says its forces still strong

Syria's information minister on Sunday distanced the government from comments by the country's vice president that neither the rebels nor the forces of President Bashar al-Assad could win the civil war.

Last week Vice President Farouq al-Sharaa said in a newspaper interview that the country needed a government of national unity since neither side could win militarily.

"There are 23 million people in Syria with their own personal opinions, this was one of those 23 million," the information minister, Umran Ahid al-Za'bi, told a news conference in the Syrian capital Damascus.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8BM07C20121223

Dozens killed in air strike on bakery in central Syria

Dozens of people were killed and wounded in an air strike on a bakery in Syria's central Hama province, activists said, with some reporting up to 200 dead.

"We cannot get an exact figure yet because we are still confused about which are dead and which are wounded," one activist said.

The strike hit Halfaya, a town recently seized by rebels in a new push to take territory in Hama.

Activists said more than a thousand people had been queuing at the bakery. Shortages of fuel and flour have made bread production erratic across the country, and people often wait for hours to buy bread.

New York-based Human Rights Watch condemned army air strikes on bakeries earlier this year, arguing that in some incidents the military was not using enough precision to target rebel sites and in other instances may have intentionally hit civilians.

"We hadn't received flour in around three days so everyone was going to the bakery today, and lots of them were women and children," Hamawi said. "I still don't know yet if my relatives are among the dead."

https://twitter.com/Syrian_Diamond

A woman with a dead soul told me in Zaatari camp:our life was unbearable in Syria, but here in the camp I have lost the will to live
6:28 AM

After seeing the Zaatari refugee camp myself, I agree when Syrians say: It is better to die than to live in that place!! Ya Allah!
6:23 AM

With the help of @childrenandwar 20 Syrian mental health prof. were trained in Jordan to teach Syrian children to overcome trauma Dec2012
6:22 AM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters have liberated the police station in the town of al-sabkhah in al-raqqah
1:10 AM

resistance fighters have liberated the town of al-shanan in al-raqqah
1:11 AM

resistance fighters are attacking brigade 552 in the southern countryside of #aleppo (near khan touman)
1:38 AM

jabhat al-nusrah says it blew up the baath party's building in al-huwaiqah neighborhood in deirezzor city
1:46 AM

resistance fighters destroyed 2 tanks in darayya. an assad warplane is bombing the area
7:17 AM

https://twitter.com/tweets4peace

Tens and very likely a couple of hundred are reported martyred in Hama after a jet bombed a bakery. Via @DSyrer
10:23 AM

https://twitter.com/BSyria

Hama under fire. Helfaya bakery has been hit with warplanes, death toll is very high but not finalised yet. Many injuries.
10:31 AM

https://twitter.com/DSyrer

Brahimi is probably having tea with Bashar right now while his army proceeds to bomb another bakery somewhere else.
10:42 AM

https://twitter.com/CFKlebergTT

Videos allegedly showing mayhem after Helfaya bakery air bombing are absolutely horrifying. Bodies ripped apart in the streets.
11:00 AM

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?p...17848338242310

Local Coordination Committees in Syria

The number of martyrs in Syria has risen to 60 martyrs thus far (including 5 children and 8 women), 22 martyrs were reported in Damascus and its Suburbs (7 of them in Nashabiya), 20 martyrs in Aleppo (13 of them in Sfera), 3 martyrs in Homs, 2 martyrs in Deir Ezzor, 2 martyrs in Daraa, 1 martyr in Idlib, 1 martyr in Raqqa and 9 martyrs in Hama the number of martyrs is likely to increase as dozens of martyrs and wounded were reported in a massacre after shelling a bakery in Helfaya, the number is still unknown

[visionary]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middle...227897356.html

UN envoy Brahimi arrives in Damascus

International peace envoy tasked with ending Syria’s conflict has arrived in Syria and is set to meet with President Bashar al-Assad.

Lakhdar Brahimi is hoping to "achieve a breakthrough", to broker a solution that would lead to a consensus transitional government with full authority, diplomatic sources told Al Jazeera on Sunday.

Brahimi's trip is his third to Damascus since taking his post in August.

Instead of flying directly to Syria as he has on previous visits, Brahimi landed in Beirut and travelled to the Syrian capital by land because of fighting near the Damascus airport, Lebanese officials said.

https://twitter.com/tomgara

Is there any point on a slippery slope where we start bombing Syrian airforce bases? 200,000 dead? 500,000? http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8BM07C20121223 …
11:00 AM

https://twitter.com/rimamaktabi

While in syria, I met a grandma waiting for bread. Back in her small room, 14 orphaned kids haven't eaten bread for 3 days, had no heating
11:10 AM

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

i know that many syrians are hungry but for god's sake, don't allow many people to gather near the bread bakeries
10:57 AM

oh my god...i am crying...i'm watching horrible videos from hama... many innocent people were blown up by assad's bombs....
11:21 AM

resistance fighters have liberated a military checkpoint near al-sahabah mosque in teshrin neighborhood in damascus
12:23 PM

resistance fighters control the town of menneg near menneg (meng) military airport
12:45 PM

https://twitter.com/tweets4peace

At this moment people are still under rubble. Many are injured with little treatment. Many new orphans/widows. Hama
11:05 AM

shells fell onto Albayada+released a gas. 8 injuries so far due to gas. Confirmed on Albayada not khaldiyah. Besieged areas of Homs
12:49 PM

if he [Assad] agrees to meet me for dialogue wallah great, I'll have a knife with me and stab him so many times I'll loose count.
12:50 PM

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?p...17848338242310

Local Coordination Committees in Syria

The number of martyrs in Syria has risen to 171 so far, including dozens of children and women: 103 martyrs were reported in Hama; including 90 in the bakery massacre in Helfaya, 35 in Damascus and its Suburbs, 20 in Aleppo; including 13 in Safera, 6 in Homs, 3 in Daraa, 2 in Deir Ezzor, 1 in Idlib, and 1 in Raqqa. It should be noted that the number is estimated to rise because retrieving the bodies of martyrs in Helfaya continues after shelling a bakery in the city

[visionary]

http://blogs.aljazeera.com/topic/syr...ope-will-repel

Syrian rebels say they captured military base and seized weapons they hope will repel air raids by regime forces

Syrian rebels have seized a military base in the country's north, capturing weapons they hope will repel air raids by President Bashar al-Assad's forces, rebels said on Sunday.

Under cover of rain and fog, Col. Anas Ibrahim Abu Zeid led 200 fighters in a four-hour operation to take over the 135 Infantry Brigade base in the village of Hawa, a mostly Kurdish area in northern Aleppo province, on Saturday, they said, as they showed the base to journalists.

The rebels found about 150 soldiers at the base, though it can hold up to 3,000 troops, Abu Zeid said. Between 10-15 soldiers were taken prisoner, he said. They would not say what happened to the other troops, although a Reuters journalist saw at least one corpse.

The rebels said they lost six of their men.

https://twitter.com/rozalinachomsky

resistance fighters destroyed a military checkpoint & killed assad troops in al-hafiriyah neighborhood in al-qaboun
1:20 PM

resistance fighters have liberated al-sahabah mosque & most of the areas in teshrin neighborhood in damascus city
1:06 PM

i can confirm now the liberation of tal ajar military base near menneg (meng) military airport in aleppo countryside
2:10 PM

defection of 30 troops (presidential guards) in sarrin http://youtu.be/1c_wNeuycJs
2:36 PM

https://twitter.com/SyrianSmurf

Just spoke to family in Syria...my aunt's husband was injured while at a mosque in MaaratAlNouman...he lost his vision and hearing.
4:39 PM

Everyone in the family is now in a different area...my aunt and her husband went to Albarra, Jabal Alzawiyah
4:39 PM

Other members of my family went to Damascus...but never actually made it there...we don't know what happened to them.
4:40 PM

https://twitter.com/samersniper

Just talked to one of the doctors.. it's not chemical, nor nerve gas.. Just a toxic gas,, they don't know what it is until now
5:14 PM

Symptoms are collapse of nerves completely, lack of vision, Iris expansion, and if not treated immediately lead to death!!
5:38 PM

5 Martyrs and more than 35 injuries in the TOXIC GAS ATTACK on Homs until now.
5:49 PM

https://twitter.com/AlexanderPageSY

CONFIRMED: Electricity blackout in most areas of Damascus with explosions reported in numerous areas.
6:53 PM

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?p...17848338242310

Local Coordination Committees in Syria

The number of martyrs in Syria has risen to 208 thus far, among them dozens of children and women: 106 martyrs were reported in Hama, among them 94 due to the massacre at the bakery in Helfaya; 51 in Damascus and its Suburbs; 32 in Aleppo, including 13 in Sfeira; 7 in Homs; 6 in Daraa; 2 in Deir Ezzor; 2 in Raqqa; 1 in Lattakia and 1 in Idlib.

Note that the toll will likely increase due to the continuation of retrieving bodies from under the rubble in Helfaya after a bakery was shelled.

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...=1#post9046975
44,104 people killed so far in Syria