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Tues. 31 May. 2011
VOLTAIRE NET Is Arab Spring Spreading to US Congressional Staffs?...... 1
COUNTER PUNCH Hello History, Get Me Rewrite……………………………...5
JERUSALEM POST Report: Nasrallah and Assad met to discuss Syria reforms..11
RUDAW Syrian Kurdish Parties Not Invited to Summit in Turkey….12
HURRIYET Syrian opposition gather to set up ‘transitional council’…...16
INFO WAR MONITOR The Emergence of Open and Organized Pro-Government Cyber Attacks: The Case of the Syrian Electronic Army.…18
GUARDIAN Syrian businessmen back opposition conference…………..29 The endgame for Syria's bloody junta……………………...32
NYTIMES Armed Residents Put Up Resistance to Syrian Army…...…35 HOME PAGE Is Arab Spring Spreading to US Congressional Staffs? Some Congressional scholars, historians, and longtime observers of Congress are expressing dismay over what seems to have dramatically diminished the claimed, “World’s greatest deliberative body” With 41 applause interruptions and 29 standing ovations, even with some appearing half-hearted and somewhat forced, Congress sent a message that the Legislative branch, increasingly under the control of a foreign power, and not the Executive branch, will continue to determine American policy toward Israel and the Middle Franklin Lamb Voltaire Net, 29 May 2011,
Beirut Millions of American voters were offended this week by the vulgar display on Capitol Hill which witnessed the annual rite of nearly 2/3?s of Members on Congress stumbling over one another at the annual AIPAC Conference in order to ingratiate themselves 2 with their hosts and to protect their sinecures. Equally nauseating to many was what some on Capitol Hill are calling “Congressional Black Tuesday” when they assert Congress cheapened its status in American and foreign eyes and fouled itself by taking the role of undignified cheerleaders for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu during his appearance before a joint session of Congress, an invitation normally reserved for august occasions and accomplished personages.
FLOOR LEADERS! With 41 applause interruptions and 29 standing ovations, even with some appearing half-hearted and somewhat forced, Congress sent a message that the Legislative branch, increasingly under the control of a foreign power, and not the Executive branch, will continue to determine American policy toward Israel and the Middle East.
Some Congressional scholars, historians, and longtime observers of Congress are expressing dismay over what seems to have
2 dramatically diminished the claimed, “World’s greatest deliberative body”. Among those objecting to what they see as the corruption of Congress are an increasing number of the more than 18,000 Congressional staffers, many of whom work as many as 70 hours per week in their sometimes highly competitive jobs. Most Congressional staffers understand and respect the institution of Congress, know their Members politics, are aware of American interests in the Middle East and are fairly well informed on the Question of Palestine.
However, many are not happy and are beginning to rise up against what they are witnessing in their offices which is the increasing smothering of their erstwhile legislative aid roles by agents of Israel such as AIPAC. The latter are seen as increasingly preempting their roles and taking over some of their work by flooding their offices with position papers and then lobbying incessantly to see their ‘recommendations” implemented. 3 It is not always easy being a Congressional staffer and many have been and continue to be abused in various ways, some of which become public in an institution that values discretion and averting attention from their Members foibles. Yet working in Congress can be interesting and often rewarding work for those wanting to serve their constituents and help solve myriad problems on the local and federal level.
There is no shortage of access these days to friends and acquaintance who work on the Hill and whose work assignments include US Middle East policy.* *This longtime observer of Congress and former staffer has been somewhat pleasantly surprised by the strong reaction of some Congressional aides to last week’s events on the Hill and the rapid changes happening across the Middle East.
Congressional staff reactions to the Obama and Netanyahu AIPAC speeches and particularly the Israeli PM’s speech to Congress is strong and leads to the tentative conclusion that the effects the Arab Spring are being felt in both Houses of Congress as well as
3 numerous support agencies such as the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress.
Many House and Senate staffers identify with those of similar age who have taken to the streets across the Middle East who are thought of as courageous, smart and reasonable. They also understand that the Arab Awakening of 2011 is an historic game changer and they are often deeply sympathetic and supportive. Perhaps because of their knowledge of the issues, they express abhorrence to the Zionist falsehoods and disinformation that comes from AIPAC offices at the bottom of Capitol Hill and some of which were repeated by Netanyahu in their workplace. Virtually all Congressional staffers who objected to Netanyahu’s appearance before Congress expressed rejection of his following assertions as ludicrously false: • “Of 300 million Arabs in the Middle East and North Africa, only Israel’s Arab citizens enjoy real democratic rights.” • “Throughout the millennial history of the Jewish capital, the only time that Jews, Christians and Muslims could worship freely, could have 4 unfettered access to their holy sites, has been during Israel’s sovereignty over Jerusalem.” • “In Judea and Samaria, the Jewish people are not foreign occupiers.” • “In recent years, the Palestinians twice refused generous offers by Israeli prime ministers to establish a Palestinian state on virtually all the territory won by Israel in the Six-Day War.” • “We have helped the Palestinian economic growth by removing hundreds of barriers and roadblocks to the free flow of goods and people, and the results have been nothing short of remarkable.” • “The Palestinian refugee problem will be resolved outside the borders of Israel.” • “They (Palestinians) continue to educate their children to hate.” • “A nuclear armed Iran would ignite a nuclear arms race in the Middle East.”
How Netanyahu received his “speech of a lifetime” ovations* Two staffers who work with the House Foreign Affairs Committee and who know the issue of Palestine very well and also how AIPAC operates on the Hill explained to this observer how Netanyahu’s “speech of a lifetime” was organized by AIPAC. Firstly, orders were issued that nothing was to be left to chance and they essentially succeeded, but for the protesting slogans
4 shouted by Rae Abileah before AIPAC undercover security tackled her and she ended up in the hospital, groped, injured and under arrest.
“Here is how Bibi got his “spontaneous” applause”, one and then the other explained. “AIPAC, as usual with visiting Israeli officials, edited his speech for most favorable local consumption. Marks were made at the end of intended applause lines for Bibi to highlight them verbally. Key Members such as Eric Cantor (R- VA), Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Harry Reid (D-NV) were designated as floor leaders and were seated in strategic locations in the Chamber. Once Bibi began his speech the floor leaders would leap up at the indicated cue phrases and begin to applaud enthusiastically. Quite naturally, others would follow either not wanting to appear impolite or to stand out and be noticed as not showing proper support for Israel and its Prime Minister.
5 “ In addition, AIPAC staffers who prowl congressional offices daily, let it be known that videos of the Members listening to Bibi would be kept on file and insinuated that how the Member’s performed during his speech to Congress would be taken into consideration when planning this summer’s Jewish fundraising events.
One aide, who supports his boss’s “moderately pro-Palestinian positions”, defended his applause for Netanyahu with these words: “Look, my guy could not just sit there and be conspicuous. Of course he resents being forced to fake support for Israel’s insane policies that he believes harms our country. Believe me, many Members feel like him and many Hill staffers are disgusted by what we see. But the guy needs to keep his job to work on other issues like protecting Medicare and stopping home foreclosures. Plus not many of our constituents probably even watched him grovel on TV so it was kind of a freebie for us. What would you have done?” A surprising number of Congressional staffers explain that they feel they are stigmatized abroad and particularly in the Middle East as being part of the Israel lobby when they are not. One
5 staffer explained: “This sounds arrogant but we who work in Congress know this subject much better than the general American public and when you understand the history of Palestine and its takeover by Europeans and the continuing ethnic cleansing of the rightful owners of the land, how do you think we feel? We feel the same as the Palestinians refugees spread all around the World feel. We are human beings too. Arab and foreign media often lump us with the Members of Congress, whereas in reality many of us are working for change.”
One lady, whose job it is to summarize and update Arab-Israeli conflict developments for her boss who is a Senator from the Midwest explained that “sometimes AIPAC sees what I write and will contact and challenge me on my work that should be between me and my boss. Everyone knows that Members of Congress are regularly pressured and targeted by AIPAC. You should know that dozens of staffers have been fired from their jobs on the Hill during the 15 years I have been here. I may be next.” And then she 6 added, “But until that day comes I will continue to support the Palestinian cause and work to change our foreign policy and see that it’s made in the USA and not in Tel Aviv.”
Franklin Lamb, a regular contributor to Rebel News, is doing research in Lebanon and can be contacted c/o [email protected].
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Hello History, Get Me Rewrite Distorting the Syrian Uprising With the Help of the (UK) Independent By PETER LEE Counter Punch, 29 May 2011,
The Syrian government has banned foreign and, I would imagine, anything but state-media reportage on the ongoing unrest.
So I guess that foreign journos have little to chew on except reports relayed by dissidents and their own, understandable
6 resentment at Bashar al-Assad’s attempt to dominate the news cycle.
Even so, I think The (U.K.) Independent’s Alastair Beach or his editors reached a new low in submissive fluffing of the Syrian uprising.
The issue concerns a rather cool young Syrian gentleman, Ahmad Biasi, who made a guerilla video debunking desperate government spin concerning cellphone footage of heavy-handed government stomping of detainees in the town of Al Bayda. Not our town, said the government. Some old footage...maybe from Iraq?
Baisa did a video tour of his town, showing that the square where the stomping occurred was indisputably Al Bayda. At the end of the video, Biasi stood in front of the camera and held up his national ID card to certify the authenticity of his film.
7 The video went viral and the Syrian government detained Biasi.
Now let’s put the spinmobile in the deft hands of Alastair Beach. He writes:
“ But his bravery came at a terrible cost. Earlier this month, Ahmad was arrested by one of Syria's most feared intelligence units. Human-rights activists – who received reports last week that he had died under torture – told The Independent that had been held in a secret-service headquarters in Damascus.
“ Before the weekend started, many people in Syria thought that Ahmad Biasi was dead. Human-rights organisations were receiving reports that he had suffered a terrifying final few hours at the hands of Syria's secret police.
“By Saturday night, it transpired he was very much alive and had given an interview to state television offering proof to that effect. ‘We know he was detained and taken by security,’ said Wissam Tarif, executive director of the Syrian human-rights organisation Insan. ‘He was humiliated in front of other prisoners. They
7 urinated on him and he lost consciousness after being electrocuted. He was very badly tortured. They made him an example to the others and made other prisoners watch as he was being tortured.’
“According to Mr Tarif, the types of abuse used by the Air Force Intelligence Directorate – the notorious branch of the secret police believed to have taken Ahmad – include electrocution, nail extraction and genital mutilation. ‘The level of brutality they are using is just absurd,’ Mr Tarif added. ‘It is so inhuman.’”
Other human-rights organisations also received reports of Ahmad's death. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, residents in Al-Bayda had feared that "Ahmad may have died after being subjected to severe torture".
At the end of the article, we get the denouement:
“ Syrian state television dropped a happy bombshell. It ran an 8 interview showing Ahmad Biasi sitting on a leather chair in a blank room expressing his "surprise" at hearing about his own death.
“Looking gaunt but otherwise healthy, he said: "I was home when I heard that I had died under torture in a prison. I was very surprised and I felt strange when I saw it on the news. I wondered how they broadcast such fake news. It is humiliating."
The Independent’s takeaway: Score 1 for the Uprising!
“Yet in spite of the dramatic turn of events, news of Ahmad's fate may turn out to harm the Syrian regime more than it had anticipated when it released the footage. Activists have already accused the secret police of extracting a forced confession, while others are saying that the interview has inadvertently done what Ahmad intended to do in the first place: prove that he was Syrian and that the original video of government abuse did not take place in Iraq.”
8 And the title of the piece: Protester who exposed lies at the heart of Syria's regime
Actually, he also appears to have exposed the exaggerations and misrepresentations that seem to permeate the media campaign of the Syrian dissidents...and the foreign media’s insatiable appetite for sensationalism.
In defense of Mr. Beach, it is possible that his efforts to report the fact of Biasi’s detention and the allegations of the opposition straight up got mangled by the editor.
Possibly, the original report was electrocuted, suffered genital mutilation, got pissed on, and/or suffered fingernail removal during its preparation. All these things can and do occur in the environs of a British newsroom.
It would be irresponsible not to speculate, or recycle the 9 unfounded assertions of interested parties.
But I just know it came at a terrible cost.
I do not doubt that the Syrian security forces do terrible things to detainees.
But the real story here was that they apparently chose not do them to Biasi—though I would think it likely that they leaned on him in unpleasant physical and psychological ways. The Syrian government hoped to score a propaganda coup by revealing Biasi —a self-identified, genuine, and celebrated dissident!— emerging alive and reasonably well from the maw of Syrian government detention, thereby giving the lie to the scaremongering of the dissidents.
However, that was a propaganda victory that The Independent appears dead-set to deny the Syrian government, even at the cost of some markedly tortured prose.
9 The Syrian uprising is a little more complicated than non-violent protesters rising up against Syrian authoritarianism.
The struggle is still very much in the hearts-and-minds phase for both sides.
There are large numbers of Syrians not particularly sympathetic to the dissidents, whom the opposition is trying to wean away from the government by fomenting an ever deeper and ever more polarizing crisis and support the narrative of a government discredited by its own dysfunction.
It’s a different dynamic from Bahrain (total war against the Shi’a majority) and Yemen (popular uprising hijacked by Saudi meddling).
The government has tried to split the opposition by inflicting repression on those who continue to protest after the pledge of 10 constitutional revision, inviting dialogue with those willing to discuss reforms through a state-mediated process, and raising the entirely plausible specter of a sectarian meltdown similar to Lebanon’s and Iraq’s to sway the general public in favor of the regime's continued survival.
Nobody has emerged from the ranks of the dissidents to negotiate; it’s pretty much Bashar-must-go. How well this is working—basically, who will give up through exhaustion first, the demonstrators, the security forces, or the fence-sitters—remains to be seen.
However, from the smaller turnout, albeit at a larger number of demonstrations, there are some signs that the government’s grinding strategy of attrition may be prevailing.
And the opposition isn’t just a question of people’s power by non- violent demonstrators. It concludes some shadowy, militant forces, including the Muslim Brotherhood (which runs one of the top dissident social media sites) and reactionary, Saudi-backed strongmen like Rifaat Assad and Abdul Halim Khaddam.
10 Dozens of members of Syrian security forces have died in encounters with armed gangs. Dissident efforts to cover up and excuse the violence are a story in themselves. The soldiers “were shot by other soldiers who didn’t want to fire on dissidents”; they were “shot by their officers in a provocation”; in one instance, there was a concession that the security forces might have died at the hands of regime opponents, with the excuse that they reflected blood-for-blood tribal enmities generated by the crackdown. The sophists also had their go, declaring that, if the authoritarian government couldn’t protect its own troops, that was nothing more than a demonstration of the fact that it had forfeited its right to exist.
There is now a concerted campaign to keep the demonstrations going, while spurning the government’s attempts to engage in negotiations.
11 This might be because the dissidents fear that, once the tide revolutionary passion recedes, they will have a hard time forcing the Syrian government to live up to any bargain.
It also might be because there are important elements among the Syrian dissidents who are still loath to take leadership of negotiations and reveal themselves, because the focus might shift to them...and the Syrian public might not like what they see.
Reportedly, the Muslim Brotherhood—which has a long and bloody history of opposition to the Assad regime, including the insurrection that terminated in the Hama massacre—is considering stepping forward to give direction to the hitherto fractured movement.
The MB is midwifing a gathering in Ankara, Turkey, May 31 through June 2, that aims to give domestic demonstrators and foreign governments something concrete to get behind, thereby ratcheting up pressure on the regime. The Syrian government, while mindful of the importance of continued Turkish forbearance on the issue of the future of Assad’s regime, is obviously anxious
11 and unhappy that the Turkish government has decided to give the opposition a platform.
Until then, the current strategy seems to bum rush the rising and keep the ball rolling through enthusiasm, outrage, propaganda, disinformation, some of it delivered courtesy of The Independent.
P.S. For you forensic etymologists out there, “the bums rush” originally referred to the forcible and unceremonious eviction of an indigent person by the bouncer from a bar or other place of business that did not welcome his presence. In the modern era, “bumrushing” took on a reverse meaning: a non-paying clientele forcing its way past security to gain admission to a club or concert. By extension, it means taking advantage of chaos, distraction, or carelessness by the powers-that-be to seize an otherwise unattainable and perhaps undeserved advantage.
Peter Lee is a business man who has spent thirty years observing, analyzing, and writing on Asian affairs. Lee can be reached at peterrlee-2000@yahoo. 12
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Report: Nasrallah and Assad met to discuss Syria reforms Jerusalem Post, 30 May 2011,
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has met with Syrian President Bashar Assad several times to discuss reform in Syria, Naharnet reported on Monday.
The report did not specify when the meetings were held.
Assad was quoted in the report as telling Nasrallah that he did not need encouragement to go ahead with his planned reforms in Syria.
He also reportedly said that steps necessary for the implementation of the reforms are connected to Damascus's efforts
12 to confront "some countries" who are trying to topple the Syrian regime over its ties with Hezbollah.
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Syrian Kurdish Parties Not Invited to Opposition Summit in Turkey Rudaw (Kurdish blog works from Kurdistan and pays a special interest to the Syrian Kurds-it’s anti Syria) 31/05/2011,
The Syrian opposition parties have decided to hold a summit in the coming weeks in the Turkish city of Antalya, to discuss the future of their country and introduce themselves to the world as the new leaders of Syria, once the reign of Bashar al-Assad has ended.
However, according to one Kurdish politician, the Kurdish 13 political parties have not been called to this summit. Only independent figures are invited.
Ammar Qurabi, a national human rights leader in Syria, told Rudaw that on June 31 a broad summit will be held that will include people from all fields in Syria.
“ The summit will involve nationalists, intellectuals, and journalists, as well as representatives of all the Syrian opposition parties, protesters, and religious groups,” said Qurbani.
Sawasiya, the Syrian nongovernmental human rights organization, confirmed that the Syrian army and security forces have killed around 1100 protesters in the past two months.
This NGO has a full record of the names of those killed, many of whom were from the Khoran region in southern Syria, where the protests against the Syrian regime started on March 18.
13 Qurabi said that the conference is intended to support the Syrian protests and the legitimate demands of the Syrian people for freedom and democracy.
“The summit will give a clear picture of the strength of the Syrian opposition, which is stronger for the blood spilt by the Syrian people. Those in the opposition will also put aside the political and ideological disagreements that exist among them,” said Qurbadni.
Many big names have come forward to take part in this summit, such as Syrian intellectual Sadiq Jala Azm, Abdul Razzaq Eid, the head of Syrian media abroad, Abdullah Samir al-Mulhim, the leader of Anzi tribe, and Shakir Razwan Ziyada, the managing director of the Syrian Center for Political and Strategic Research.
Waleed Shekho, a Kurdish activist who lives abroad, criticized this conference, saying that Kurdish political movements should be represented as well, not just independent Kurdish figures. 14 “The conference organizers have invited specific people, but not as representatives of the Kurdish nation and the Kurdish movements, which they’re disregarding,” said Shekho.
Although many people consider this summit to be a “historic opportunity” for creating a substitute to the Assad regime and uniting the voice of the Syrian opposition, Shekho said that Turkey and the organizers of this conference are trying to ignore the Kurds.
“ This is a plan against the Kurdish movements in Syria and an attempt to keep out the Kurdish organizations. At the same time, it is about drawing Syria’s future. I’m afraid that this will divide the Kurdish voice and unity in Syria,” said Shekho.
However, Abdul Basit Hammo, a leading member and media secretary of Syria’s Kurdish Popular Union Party, believes that some Kurdish representatives have not received invitations to the conference because their parties have not yet made their stance about the situation in Syria and the Syrian regime clear.
14 Hammo, who lives in Germany, told Rudaw, “Our party has been formally invited to the summit in Antalya and we will participate and explain our views about the solutions for Kurdish issues and Syria’s future in a clear manner.”
Regarding claims that some Syrian parties and Turkey aim to disregard the Kurdish issues in Syria after the fall of Assad, Hammo said, “It is not clear yet who is behind the organization of this summit. We are ready for it and adamant about discussing the Kurdish issues and their solutions. If we feel there’s an anti- Kurdish angle to this conference, we will leave the place.”
Nuri Brimo, the information officer of the Kurdish Democratic Party in Syria, told Rudaw, “The Arabic parties of Syria have been invited to this summit, including the Muslim Brotherhood, which is one of the organizers, and the People’s Party, but no Kurdish party has been invited. Hammo and Jwankurd have been invited as 15 known figures and not as political party representatives.”
Brimo rejected the idea that the Kurdish parties are undecided and their stance not clear.
“Our stance is very clear. Where do you think the youth who are protesting daily in the Syrian Kurdish cities come from? They are all part of the political parties,” he said.
Brimo, who is now living in Iraqi Kurdistan, said that he was invited by phone to attend the conference as a writer, and not as a political party representative, but he refused.
“ They said, ‘we do not invite you as a political party representative,’” said Brimo. “I did not choose to go, and I believe the other Kurdish figures should not go either, so the boycotting will be general.”
Brimo hoped that those who have agreed to attend the summit will make clear their resentment towards the organizers’ selective
15 invitations, and withdraw from the summit if they sense any downgrading of the Kurdish issues.
“ We want to solve the Syrian issues together, as 23 million people. We support the talks of the Syrian parties, but we see this disregard of Kurdish entities as a plan or a pressuring, no matter where it comes from.”
Brimo said that parties that exist only on the Internet should not be regarded as alternatives to Syria’s Kurdish political parties, who have a lot of influence in current events in Syria.
Political observers believe that there has been no good will between Syria and Turkey for awhile now. According to the Israeli intelligence website File-Debka, Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey secretly ordered his government officials to cut ties with Syria. Hence, some perceive this summit in Turkey as proof of Turkey’s new stance against Assad. 16 Mahmood Muhammad also known as Abu Sabir, a leader and representative of the Syria’s Kurdistan Democratic Union, told Rudaw that not inviting the Kurdish parties simply means the summit organizers are not concerned about the Kurds.
“Unfortunately, summit organizers did not send any invitations to the Kurdish political parties; therefore we feel that their intentions with regard to the Kurds are not good. Turkey and the other parties plan to disregard the Kurds at their summits, and this does not bode well for the Kurdish people,” said Abu Sabir.
Abdu Sabir said that the reason for inviting a few Kurdish intellectuals was only to reduce the angry Kurdish reaction.
“ To reduce the Kurdish outrage against the summit, they have invited few Kurdish figures—but as individuals, not as political entities. From Iraqi Kurdistan, they have invited two Syrian Kurds, Dr. Razwan Badini and Muhammad Hammo. I believe neither of them should have accepted,” said Abu Sabir.
16 He also criticized the fact that some Kurdish individuals, living in Europe, have been invited, who have no real influence on the Kurdish issue in Syria.
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Syrian opposition gather in Antalya to set up ‘transitional council’ SEV?L KUCUKKO?UM Hürriyet Daily News, ANKARA Monday, May 30, 2011
With Syrian protests turning increasingly violent in recent days, dissidents have been gathering for a conference in Antalya to discuss a representative body that will draw international attention to the uprising. A discussion has already fueled up some of the Syrian opposition over the meeting, which will select a “transitional council” to represent the Syrian revolution on the 17 international scene.
Syrian opposition groups will be meeting for three days in Antalya, from May 31 to June 2, in a conference organized by the Egypt-based National Organization of Human Rights, or NOHR.
The meeting would be centered on establishing “a temporary national council to manage the crisis and mobilize all the possible support to protect the lives of the unarmed civilians who are exposed to the worst kinds of oppression” by the Syrian regime, the invitation statement of the conference “Change in Syria” reads.
“ We have come with the idea of convening a national Syrian conference that aims to launch workshops that include all Syrians of different ethnicities, sects and political affiliations,” to concentrate the activity of all Syrians, the statement said.
The conference would “assign experts in the Syrian law to prepare a new draft constitution that guarantees the standards of full citizenship, equality in rights and duties of all the components of
17 the Syrian community as a prelude to organize free and fair elections,” it said.
The signatories of the declaration of the conference “refuse all forms of foreign military intervention in this crisis,” the statement added.
Ahead of the meeting, objections to establishing a “transitional council” has emerged among Syrian opposition. Setting up a transitional council at this stage "would mean a prison or death sentence" for anyone who participates from inside Syria, with a continued military crackdown against demonstrations and assaults on cities, Walid al-Bunni, a veteran opposition figure told Reuters last week.
The participants in previous Syrian opposition meetings in Istanbul, organized by the Istanbul Platform in April, including various Turkish non-governmental organizations such as the 18 Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed Peoples, or Mazlum-Der, was mostly from Islamic-rooted groups such as Muslim Brotherhood.
The Antalya meeting was set to bring together dissidents from the Syrian opposition of a different profile: mostly exiled Syrians in European countries and the U.S.
Representatives of Kurdish movements in Syria, such as the Kurdish Democratic Party of Syria, or KDP-S, the Kurdish Leftist Party in Syria, the Kurdish Azadi Party, the Kurdish Future Movement, are also invited.
“ The Syrian opposition meeting in Antalya does not consist of genuine representatives of the people,” Ribal Al-Assad, the director of the Organization for Democracy and Freedom in Syria, said in a statement on Friday.
“ Moreover they are individuals who promote extremism or sectarianism, which has no place on the path to freedom and democracy,” he stated. “Playing the sectarian card is not what the
18 Syrian people want and it could only destabilize the country and lead to chaos and not reform.”
“So it is imperative that these individuals and their evil agenda is exposed to the international community,” Al-Assad said.
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The Emergence of Open and Organized Pro-Government Cyber Attacks in the Middle East: The Case of the Syrian Electronic Army Helmi Noman Info War Monitor (Canadian research blog) May 30, 2011
Introduction Since the beginning of the popular uprisings and protests in the 19 Middle East and North Africa, events in the region have been characterized by increased contestation in cyberspace among regime sympathizers, governments, and opposition movements. One component of this contestation is the tendency among governments and networks of citizens supportive of the state to use offensive computer network attacks. Such tactics are supplements to legal, regulatory, and other controls, and technical forms of Internet censorship.
For example, a group known as the Iranian Cyber Army has defaced Twitter and Iranian opposition websites. Also, Tunisian political activists and Yemeni oppositional websites have both accused their government security organizations of launching attacks on their sites in an attempt to silence their message and deny access to their content.
In this report, we document the activities of the Syrian Electronic Army, which appears to be a case of an open and organized pro- government computer attack group that is actively targeting political opposition and Western websites. Our aim is to assess to
19 what extent we can find evidence of Syrian government assistance for the attack groups, and what the significance of the attacks themselves are for civil society and cyberspace contestation.
Overview Syria has become the first Arab country to have a public Internet Army hosted on its national networks to openly launch cyber attacks on its enemies. The intensity and scope of the Syrian Electronic Army’s activities signal an interesting development in the Syrian pro-regime Internet arena: In addition to being one of the most repressive Internet censors in the region, the local media, some of which is government-run is apparently supporting the Army’s orchestrated aggressive efforts to attack, by means of website defacements and comment spamming, political opposition and Western websites.
The Syrian Electronic Army claims on its website that it was founded by a team of young Syrian enthusiasts who did not want 20 to stay passive “towards the fabrication of facts on the events in Syria.” Information Warfare Monitor (IWM) research found that the group has a connection with the Syrian Computer Society, which was headed in the 1990s by the current Syrian President Bashar al-Assad before he became president.
The Army has been attacking and defacing Syrian oppositional and “hostile Western news” websites. However, IWM found that some of the targeted Western websites are actually not news websites but rather non-political commercial websites. Although Facebook has been disabling the Army’s Facebook pages, the Army has been creating alternative pages and has been actively spamming popular and political Facebook pages with highly repetitive and orchestrated pro-regime comments.
About the Syrian Electronic Army The Syrian Electronic Army, also known as Syrian Electronic Soldiers, claimed on its “about” web page when it was launched in the second week of May 2011 that it was not an official entity, but rather a group of young people who love their country and have decided to fight back electronically against those who have
20 attacked Syrian websites and those who are hostile to Syria. The Army replaced its “about” web page with a new one on May 27, 2011. The Army removed from the new page the reference to it not being an official entity and said it was founded by a team of young Syrian enthusiasts to fight those who use the Internet and especially Facebook to “spread hatred” and “destabilize the security” in Syria. References to it not being an official entity were still found on other pages on the site as footnotes.[1] Information Warfare Monitor (IWM) research found out that the domain name for the Army’s website (syrian-es.com) was registered on May 5, 2011 by the Syrian Computer Society (SCS), an organization that was headed by the Syrian President Bashar al- Assad in 1995 before he assumed the Presidency.
The SCS was founded in 1989 by President al-Assad’s brother the late Bassel Al-Assad, who was also its first president. According to its website, “The SCS aims at introducing IT into various Syrian economic [sic]. It also aims to diffuse informatics culture 21 by means of organizing conferences, symposia, seminars, lectures, and exhibitions, in addition to producing TV programs and issuing pamphlets concerning IT.”
Technical investigation shows that the Army’s official website is hosted by SCS-NET, the ISP arm of SCS.
The following is the Army’s domain name registration record as retrieved from domain name WHOIS database: syrian-es.com Registrant: NET, SCS-
Beirut Street Damascus, SY 13365 SY
Domain Name: SYRIAN-ES.COM
Administrative Contact , Technical Contact : NET, SCS- [email protected] Beirut Street
21 Damascus, SY 13365 SY Phone: +96311446677636
Record expires on 05-May-2012 Record created on 05-May-2011 Database last updated on 05-May-2011
Domain servers in listed order:
NS1.SCS-NET.ORG 213.178.225.4 NS2.SCS-NET.ORG 213.178.225.3
First Appearance The Syrian Electronic Army first emerged on Facebook in April 2011, days after the anti-regime protests escalated in the country. The first Facebook page (http://facebook.com/syrian.es) was disabled by Facebook shortly after being created. Almost immediately the Army created a new page (http://facebook.com/syrian.es1), but again, it was disabled by Facebook. Since then, the group has been creating new Facebook 22 pages every time one is disabled. By May 23, 2011, the group had created 14 pages. The Army created 4 pages between May 23 and 25, all of which were disabled almost immediately.
The Army then released a statement criticizing Facebook for disabling the Army’s pages and vowed to continue creating new Facebook pages. Earlier in May, the Syrian government-run al- Thawar newspaper accused Facebook’s administration of conspiring against the Syrian people and said Facebook had double standards because it shut down pages belonging to the Syrian Electronic Army without any justification or prior notice, yet it restored a pro-revolution Facebook page after it was hacked and deleted by pro-regime activists.
On May 27, the Army released the screenshot of the alleged message that Facebook has been sending them when removing a page . The text in the message reads:
“ Your Page [name of page in Arabic] has been removed for violating our Terms of Use. A Facebook Page is a distinct presence used solely for business or promotional purposes.
22 Among other things, Pages that are hateful, threatening, or obscene are not allowed. We also take down Pages that attack an individual or group, or that are set up by an unauthorized individual. If your Page was removed for any of the above reasons, it will not be reinstated. Continued misuse of Facebook’s features could result in the permanent loss of your account.
If you need further assistance with this issue, please visit http://www.facebook.com/help/contact.php? show_form=page_disabled.
The Facebook Team.”
Tracking the Army’s Facebook pages has been easy because the URL naming convention used by the Army has been predictable incrementing the number at the end of the URL, and because the Army has been publicizing the new URLs on its official website. More recently, however, they adjusted their naming scheme and at 23 the time of writing the Army’s Facebook Page is at https://www.facebook.com/ses.syrian
Interestingly, however, the group has maintained an unpublicized Facebook page (http://on.fb.me/kOiZoJ). It appears that the Army is attempting to avoid Facebook’s attention. This technique seems to have been successful; Facebook has not targeted the page even though the page hosts the same content as those that have been disabled. The unpublicized page had more than 11,684 members as of May 26, 2011.
Earlier in May, the Army started the Twitter account @syriansolider, but on May 27 it moved to @syriansoldier1 because it lost the first one under unclear circumstances. Also in May, the Army created a YouTube channel http://youtube.com/user/syrianes1 that contains mostly video clips showing the targeted websites before and after the attacks and highlights the reason why each site was attacked as well as the messages the attackers left on each site. Syrian national songs are played as background music on these clips. The channel also hosts
23 a few clips showing pro-regime demonstrations in cities around the world.
Syrian Electronic Army Activities The Army’s online activities can be divided into three key areas: 1) Defacement attacks against Syrian opposition websites; 2) defacement attacks against Western websites; and 3) spamming popular Facebook pages with pro-regime comments.
1) Defacement attacks against Syrian opposition websites
The Army has been attacking opposition websites run by groups or individuals. The first Facebook pages made software available to their members that can be used to launch distributed-denial-of- service (DDoS) attacks. The founder of the Army, who was not named, was quoted by Syrian news website Tartous Today as saying that the group uses a “widely available program” to launch attacks on hostile websites, and that he had contacted the program 24 developer who promised to send him an enhanced customized version of that program. The founder did not mention the name of the program.
On May 17, 2011, the Army claimed to have attacked over 50 websites in coordination with Arab and Syrian hackers. It added that none of the targeted websites had been destroyed and that all the Army does is “places a temporary page that presents our words and the voice of the truth.”
IWM can confirm that a number of websites have indeed been defaced and that pro-Syrian regime messages and photos of a Syrian flag and/or Syrian President Bashar al-Assad were left on these websites. In some cases the defaced pages were removed the same day but in other cases the messages remained for days.
For example, the Army has claimed responsibility for hacking the web forum http://news.syriaforums.net because “it spreads fabricated video clips of anti-regime protests in Syria.”
24 Another example is the website of popular Syrian singer Asalah Nasri (who currently lives in Egypt), which was defaced just a few days after newspapers reported that she supported the revolution against the Syrian regime and that she rejected an invitation to go to Syria to sing in support of President Bashar al-Assad. The Arabic text left on her defaced website (http://queenasalah.com) described her as a traitor, and asked her to remember that the late Syrian President Hafiz al-Assad had at some point paid for her medical treatment. Ironically, the attackers also mentioned that Syrian hackers have supported her in the past by hacking a website of an Egyptian singer who allegedly criticized the Syrian singer.
2) Defacement attacks against Western websites
The Army has claimed responsibility for defacement attacks against a number of Western websites including http://leamingtonspatowncouncil.gov.uk, the website of the Royal 25 Leamington Spa Town Council. The attackers compromised the website and replaced the original content with the following text:
“Sorry, we do not want to destroy your official website, but the British Government actions and attitudes against Syria and its interfering in the Syrian internal affairs forced us to step forward and break through your website We, the Syrian, don’t harm anybody, but if you dare to interfere in the Syrian Internal Affairs we are able to put appropriate limits STOP to interfere in the Syrian Internal Affairs Leave us alone [email protected] Dr.Hanan Noura”
Interestingly however, several of the targeted western websites do not seem to be politically relevant despite the fact that the Army claimed they are news websites that spread anti-regime news. In some cases, the Army said they were targeted “as a revenge from the foreign countries behind them.”
25 For example, the Army claimed responsibility for defacing the Italian websites http://bluereef.it (See Figure 6), http://windcam- news.it/usato/s, (See Figure 7) and http://aguide2italy.com (See Figure 8).
In these cases, the Army said that it attacked the websites because “they disseminated fabricated news about Syria”. (See Figure 9) The IWM have verified that these websites have indeed been defaced and that pro-Syrian regime messages were left on these websites. However, these sites are online shops and a tourism guide, and they do not seem to have media stories about Syria.
Further, the Army claimed responsibility for defacing the “British” website http://kl7uk.com “as a revenge from the British government for its hostile stand on Syria” (See Figure 10).
It is not clear whether the websites were attacked by mistake due to lack of understanding of Italian or English, or simply because 26 they were soft targets. Another possibility is that the Army targets websites that are perceived to be popular as a means to disseminate pre-Syrian regime messages to users of these websites.
3) Spamming popular Facebook pages with pro-regime comments
The Army has been organizing massive spam attacks on popular and political Facebook pages. In these attacks, the Syrian regime supporters post on a pre-selected Facebook page highly repetitive comments under multiple posts in a short period of time (one or two hours). Several pages have been targeted by this type of attack including pages of the European Parliament, European Union, White House, U.S. Department of State, U.S. President Barack Obama, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Oprah Winfrey, Human Rights Watch, al-Jazeera TV channel, al-Arabia TV channel, and religious scholar Sheikh Yusuf Al Qaradawi.
The Army gives different reasons for why each page was chosen. (See Figures 11 to 15) For example, Oprah Winfrey’s page was targeted as a means to influence American public opinion; TV
26 stations’ pages were targeted to influence their coverage of the events in Syria; the European Union page was targeted to protest the EU’s stand on the regime; and Sheikh Al Qaradawi’s website was targeted because he showed support to the revolution in Syria.
Other Activities The Army has conducted opinion polls and asked its Page members to vote for what type of websites they prefer to see attacked. The vast majority voted for American websites, followed by British websites. Few voted for Italian websites.
The Army often asks its “soldiers” to get ready for the next attack and specifies the timeframe (See Figure 17). The Facebook page usually does not immediately announce what website has been hacked. Instead, the page announces that the Army will “break good news soon,” perhaps to build excitement among its fans and to solicit comments, which are often in the hundreds (See Figure 18). In some cases, the Army posts links to YouTube clips that 27 “document successful hacking attacks on websites.”
The Army and the Media The Army and its activities have received ample celebratory attention from local Syrian media. Articles supportive of the Army and critical of Facebook for disabling the Army’s pages appeared in the websites of the Ministry of Information, government-run al- Thawra newspaper, government-run al-Wehda newspaper, and Syria Now. Army members have been interviewed by the state TV channel and a radio station. Army members remained anonymous and the founder of the Army was introduced as “Ali”. Interestingly, a radio program participant said that it would not have been possible for the Syrian Electronic Army to do whatever it has done had Syria not lifted the ban on Facebook. He added that had Syria lifted the ban earlier, the electronic achievements would have been much greater. Facebook and YouTube had been blocked in Syria for years until Syrian censors lifted the ban on them in February 2011.
On the other hand, the Army has started to archive on its website selected regional and international media coverage and mentions
27 of its activities, and selectively translates the articles into Arabic. Its reporting on the media coverage is celebratory and is presented as a success story. The translations leave out sections of the articles that are critical of the regime.
In addition, the Army has created a special Facebook page (http://facebook.com/ses.news) to cover news of and about the Army.
Attacks on the Syrian Electronic Army Apparently, members of the Syrian Electronic Army Facebook page have been victims of privacy infringement attempts. The Army’s website said members of its group and its supporters reported that their Facebook accounts had been compromised by “people who do not want good for Syria,” a reference to pro- revolution activists. As a result, the Army started publishing computer security lessons educating their supporters about how to protect and strengthen the security of their Facebook accounts and 28 Internet accounts in general.
Conclusion What are the broader implications of the Syrian Army attacks? This case is important because pro-government offensive computer network attacks in the Middle East and North Africa, such as these, are likely to grow and become more organized to counter the increasingly sophisticated use of the Internet by political reformers and oppositional groups. The limited success of legal and technical Internet censorship methods to stem the dissemination of political opposition content to and from these countries may encourage the government and its networks of sympathizers to employ more aggressive methods to not just silence their opponents but also attempt to manipulate their content online. Interestingly, we are witnessing more governments using once-vilified social networking and video sharing websites as tools to promote their agendas and influence conflicts in the idea-sphere.
The Syrian army case also underscores the challenges for researchers of distinguishing between the spontaneous actions of
28 groups of citizens supporting regimes out of their own volition, and those actions which are directed, either formally or informally, by governments. Though we believe that more regimes will employ offensive computer network attacks, we also believe that they will try to disguise such efforts and distance themselves out of fear of consequential legal responsibility. Although there are some intriguing connections between the Syrian government and the groups involved in these attacks, we could not find credible evidence that links the two directly beyond the tacit support that would be required for such a group to operate on Syrian networks.
Footnotes: [1] For example, see the end of this page: http://www.syrian- es.com/component/content/article/72.html (Arabic).
Helmi Noman is a Senior Researcher at the Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs (University of Toronto), and a Research Affiliate at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society, Harvard University 29
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Syrian businessmen back opposition conference Inclusion of business community at conference in Turkey shows cracks in its support for President Bashar al-Assad Lauren Williams in Beirut, Guardian, 30 May 2011,
Key business figures in Syria are aligning themselves with opposition groups before a conference in Turkey on Tuesday in a sign that Syria's traditionally pro-regime business elite may be beginning to break ranks with the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
About 300 opposition figures are expected to arrive in Antalya, southern Turkey, for the three-day Syrian Conference for Change, designed to establish dialogue between opposition groups with a view to establishing a transitional council. 29 However, as a bloody crackdown against anti-regime protests continued, with Syrian activists reporting troops had bombarded a town in the central province of Homs with artillery on Sunday, it is clear sharp divisions exist among the fledgling opposition.
Until now, the Syrian uprising has largely manifested itself at street level with support from activists abroad as disaffected and marginalised classes call for personal freedoms and an end to corruption and poverty at the hands of the elite.
Organised by the Egypt-based National Organisation for Human Rights, the Turkey conference is being privately funded by three Syrian businessmen – Ali and Wassim Sanqar, brothers who are luxury car distributors based in Damascus, and Ammar Qurabi, chairman of the national organisation and UAE-based satellite channel Orient TV.
30 Orient TV's Damascus bureau was closed after a bid to forcefully buy out the channel by the president's cousin Rami Makhlouf, who is on the US sanctions list and controls an estimated 60% of the Syrian economy through stakes in various companies.
The Sanqar brothers also ran up against Makhlouf when a law was changed allowing him to acquire sole distribution rights for their company's lucrative Mercedes dealership.
The Sanqar brothers declined to comment on their role at the conference, but Ammar Abdulhamid, the exiled Syrian dissident and head of the Washington-based Tharwa Foundation, said the inclusion of business personalities was "a significant development".
"We have a number of other businessmen and entrepreneurs here. The business community is slowly coming around to realising the need to support the future of Syria," he said.
On the eve of the conference, divisions were apparent. Organisers admitted they were rushed. Others, while calling for unity,
30 privately complained of inadequate planning and consultation. Kurdish groups are boycotting the conference.
In London, an exiled nephew of the president claimed the conference was a front for Islamist extremism. Ribal al-Assad, head of the London-based Organisation for Democracy and Change, announced he would hold an alternative conference based on "freedom, democracy and religious pluralism".
The son of Rifat al-Assad, who led the 1982 Hama massacre of up to 20,000 people following an uprising by the Muslim Brotherhood, has attracted the ire of dissidents after failing to acknowledge his father's role in the siege.
"I can assure you that none of these people represents the Syrian opposition," he said. "They are individuals that only represent themselves."
31 He said some former brotherhood members were posing as moderates.
Long suspected of holding political ambitions, Assad said his only personal role was to "play a small part in bringing freedom, democracy and human rights to my country".
A pro-democracy activist and organiser, Radwan Ziadeh from the National Initiative for Change, denied the claims, saying the conference represented both secular and moderate Islamic groups.
But he acknowledged the need for religious Syrian society to be present. "We know Syrian society is very conservative. Moderate Muslims must be present."
He said leadership alternatives in Syria had been repressed. "Everyone knows that the Syrian uprising is leaderless. We need to establish some sort of balance to move ahead.
"The intended outcome is for a united opposition established on the principles of greater co-ordination inside and outside Syria."
31 He stressed that although Turkey sanctioned the conference, no state representatives would be present but said that any party formed should seek assistance from the Arab League and other international organisations.
"We can divide the cake later on, for now the focus is on the humanitarian issue in putting pressure on regime that has killed over 1,100 people and detained more than 11,000."
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The endgame for Syria's bloody junta Damascus gambles on international vacillation. But the people know their heroism will win the day Burhan Ghalioun, 32 Guardian, 30 May 2011,
As part of the democratic revolution that has swept the Arab world, Syria's youth ignited a popular uprising on 15 March that has significantly altered the political landscape. It has also added a bright new page to the history of the Syrian people complementing previous uprisings for national liberation and independence. Events since have revealed two fundamental truths. First, the failure of the current regime to formulate a serious plan for reform that goes beyond a cosmetic overhaul of the existing system; the reinforcement of its self-seclusion and its political and intellectual stagnation. Second, the Syrian people's intention to persist in their struggle until they achieve their demands for freedom and the establishment of a democratic authority of their choosing – whatever the cost.
One of the characteristics of the regime's impotence is that it has substituted the necessary discourse on reform with an increasing use of violence, intimidation and torture in areas where the
32 citizens have expressed an undaunted will to continue in their opposition to the existing system. More than a thousand people have been killed, with many more thousands who have been wounded, disabled or imprisoned. It is now quite clear that the regime's insistence on eradicating the protest movement before initiating any reforms aims at circumventing the demands of the people, and maintaining its ability to unilaterally define the limits of any reforms.
The regime's refusal to recognise the people as a party within the equation of authority is reflected in the sometimes negative and degrading terms used to describe protesters by organs of the regime and its media. According to them, the people are "scum" who do not understand the meaning of dignity and liberty; an assembly of "cockroaches" who ought to be eliminated; groups of backward, closed-minded and stupid individuals who cannot participate in a decision which is the prerogative of the elite represented by the regime. 33 The Syrian regime is almost certainly wagering on the position of other Arab states, which have remained silent on their behaviour thus far. Similarly, it is wagering on a weak international stance, particularly with Russia and China continuing to prevent a statement of condemnation being issued by the UN security council.
Regardless, the Syrian protest movement has achieved significant gains. This is not just in reference to the fear barrier having been broken. Much more than this, the existence of the people themselves as an active political reality has been established; hundreds of thousands of Syrians who had previously surrendered to the status quo have re-entered the political arena. Moreover, those who sympathise with the movement greatly outnumber those actively participating in protests. Large swaths of the regime's supporters and helpers are also breaking away.
Therefore, despite the blows it has suffered, it is not the popular protest movement that is now facing crisis, but the regime. The losing battle it is waging against its own people has forced it to
33 divest itself of all its political, legal and moral convictions and don the robes of a medieval militia. It has forfeited any hope of regaining its position as a political system, as it is not possible to regain the people's confidence through more killing, lies and deception.
Without a doubt, the protest movement's greatest strength remains its ability to achieve its objectives based on the internal dynamics of the uprising: the designs of the Syrian people and their ability to make sacrifices in order to win their demands. So far they have displayed a spirit and a level of heroism unattained in any previous Arab uprising, and continue to insist on victory. Indeed, the regime's violence has only increased the people's conviction in the inevitability of change, in order to reaffirm their right to be the masters of their affairs.
The people are aware that to stop now, halfway down the road, would grant them nothing and that their sacrifices would be in 34 vain. It would be handing a victory to an oppressive and cruel regime which would not hesitate to use it to expand its circle of abuse and oppression of the people, relegating any hope for change to the distant future.
The regime has learned not a single positive lesson from the uprising that would induce it to undertake reforms in the future. In the two months in which it has confronted unarmed civilians, a new fascist regime has been born that will not hesitate to murder and maim. Killing has clearly become easier than speaking – and it has numerous methods of killing. This heavy use of violence will allow it ride on the backs of the people; to insult them and torture them in ways they had never previously dreamed of. It will come to exemplify a violent regime, collective punishment, mass detentions and the oppression of intellectuals and politicians just as is happening today. And it will transform the state into a fiefdom in which the feudal lord, the lord of the country, owns the land and all those who work and live in it are but obedient subjects.
34 This explains the increasing momentum of the peaceful protests, and the plans to form a national body capable of achieving two now urgent goals: first, this will reassure those sectors of the Syrian public still afraid to engage in popular demonstrations despite their belief in the need for change and their rejection of the regime's current policies and inhumane security strategies. And second, it is an appeal to public opinion and international bodies to tighten the noose on the regime, isolate it and perhaps evict it on account of its use of systematic practices of murder, torture and repression.
It is clear that the Syrian regime has abandoned any illusion of dialogue, negotiation or reform and is entrenched now more than ever behind machine guns, tanks and armour. This does not bode well for the Syrian people, and engenders – or ought to engender – additional responsibilities on the part of the international community to protect them; to act quickly in order to isolate the murderous regime in Damascus; and to expel it from international 35 forums and organisations. The regime must be awakened to the fact that the international community will no longer allow a ruling junta to wreak havoc on its people without having to bear responsibility for its actions before the international system.
It is paramount that we act swiftly and decisively to erode and completely isolate the Syrian regime – until it is compelled to lay down the tools of excessive violence it is using against the peaceful protesters and opens up serious channels of negotiation under Arab or international auspices. This must be done with a view to abandoning the current formula for rule that is predicated on the monopolisation of power, corruption and a brutal security apparatus. It must be done with a view to moving towards a multiparty democratic system that guarantees the rights of all Syrians and ensures their freedoms and the future of their children.
At such a point, dialogue will no longer take place in accordance with the agenda of an authority seeking to strengthen the current system, but will instead revolve around agreeing on the timescale and mechanisms of transition, as well as on the decisions and reforms conducive to that.
35 HOME PAGE
Armed Residents Put Up Resistance to Syrian Army NYTIMES (original story is by The Associated Press) Bassem Mroue, 30 May 2011,
BEIRUT (AP) — Residents used automatic rifles and rocket- propelled grenades to repel advancing government troops in central Syria on Monday, putting up a fierce fight for the first time in their two-month-old revolt against President Bashar Assad's autocratic regime.
The escalation raised fears the popular uprising may be moving toward a Libya-style armed conflict.
Until now, the opposition against Assad has taken the form of 36 peaceful protests by unarmed demonstrators, though authorities have claimed, without offering solid proof, that it was being led by armed gangs and propelled by foreign conspiracies.
Activists said residents of the towns of Talbiseh and Rastan, which have been under attack since Sunday in central Homs province, decided to fight back with automatic rifles and rocket- propelled grenades, and at least four civilians were killed.
"They felt that they cannot sit back any more and pray for God to help them," said one Homs resident who has wide connections in the province. He, like all residents contacted by The Associated Press, spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
Another two bodies were found early Monday in the area of Bab Amro cemetery, raising the death toll from the two-day crackdown in the country's turbulent heartland to 15, said the Local Coordination Committees in Syria, which helps organize and document the protests. State media said four soldiers were killed.
36 "The army is facing armed resistance and is not able to enter the two towns," the Homs resident said. "The army is still outside the towns and I was told that army vehicles, including armored personnel carriers, were set on fire."
A second activist confirmed residents had fought back, but said it involved individual residents protecting themselves, as opposed to an organized armed resistance with an overall command structure.
"The protests began peacefully but the practices of security forces that humiliated the people eventually led to the use of arms," he said. He said it was common for Syrians to have light weapons such as rifles in their homes, adding that in recent years weapons have been smuggled in from neighboring countries such as Lebanon and Iraq.
Homs has seen some of the biggest demonstrations against Assad since protests broke out in southern Syria in March and spread 37 across the country — posing the most serious challenge to the Assad regime's 40-year rule.
What began as a disparate movement demanding reforms has erupted into a resilient uprising seeking Assad's ouster. Human rights groups say more than 1,000 people have been killed in the crackdown, which has drawn condemnation and sanctions from the United States and European Union.
Monday's accounts were the first credible reports of serious resistance by residents taking up arms. It is not clear how widespread such resistance might be elsewhere, though there have been some reports of civilians fighting back in the town of Talkalakh near the border with Lebanon and the government and several rights group say more than 150 soldiers and policemen have been killed since the unrest began.
Details coming out of Syria are sketchy because the government has placed severe restrictions on the media and expelled foreign reporters, making it nearly impossible to independently verify accounts coming out of the country.
37 The Local Coordination Committees in Syria said Assad's fighters hit Tabliseh with artillery early Monday and that snipers were deployed on the roofs of mosques. Syrian troops, backed by tanks, have been conducting operations in Tabliseh, Rastan and the nearby town of Teir Maaleh since Sunday.
"The situation is completely hopeless," said a resident of Rastan reached by telephone who said he was barricaded in his home.
"There are dead bodies in the streets and nobody can get to them ... The town is completely surrounded by tanks," he shouted before the line was cut.
Rights activist Mustafa Osso said troops have detained hundreds of people since Sunday in Homs province.
Syria's state-run news agency said four soldiers were killed and 14 38 wounded in Tabliseh.
Assad's use of the military signals he is determined to crush the revolt, despite U.S. and European sanctions, including an EU assets freeze and a visa ban on Assad and nine members of his regime.
In Geneva, the U.N.'s top human rights official said Monday the brutality and magnitude of repression in Syria and Libya against anti-government protests is "shocking."
Navi Pillay, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the crackdown in the two countries was marked by an "outright disregard for basic human rights."
He urged the Syrian government Monday to allow a U.N. fact- finding mission to visit the country. The team has been awaiting Syria's reply since requesting a visit on May 6.
Rights activist Mustafa Osso said troops have detained hundreds of people since Sunday in Homs province.
38 HOME PAGE
Amnsty International: 'Syria video points to ‘shoot to kill’ policy of security forces'.. [article and vedio]..
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NYTIMES: 'Video of Tortured Boy’s Corpse Deepens Anger in Syria'..
Hurriyet: 'Business as usual between Turkey, Israel'..
San Fransisco Gate: 'Syria: Homs residents fight back against troops'..
Arutz Sheva: 'Hamas Moving HQ from Syria to Egypt, Warns Netanyahu'.. 39 Middle East Online: 'Netanyahu: 'terror' groups emerging in Sinai vacuum'..
Jerusalem Post: ''UNIFIL bombers also meant to launch rockets into Israel''..
Jerusalem Post: ''Israel could ask for Jews to become Palestinian citizens''..
Haaretz: 'Lieberman accused of illegal fat cat business dealings'..
Haaretz: 'Netanyahu: Israel cannot prevent UN recognition of Palestinian state'..
Guardian: 'Germany to shut all nuclear reactors'..
NYTIMES: 'Egypt’s Coptic Christians Fear Violence'..
972 Blog: ‘A message to those wishing leftist Israelis would move to Syria’..
39 NYTIMES: ‘Video of Tortured Boy’s Corpse Deepens Anger in Syria’..
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