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Agence France Presse
November 8, 2012 Thursday 10:48 AM GMT
Clashes in Damascus as Red Cross says can't cope with crisis
DAMASCUS, Nov 8 2012
Syrian rebels clashed with troops in Damascus Thursday amid mounting
violence in the capital, as the Red Cross said it was struggling to
cope with the country's worsening humanitarian crisis.
The main opposition Syrian National Council (SNC), meanwhile, elected
a new leadership heavily packed with Islamists, as Syria's neighbour
Turkey said it reserved the right to defend itself amid talks with
NATO on deploying Patriot missiles.
Fresh fighting broke out overnight in Damascus in the disputed
southern neighbourhood of Qadam and in Mazzeh in the west, said the
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of
activists and medics on the ground.
It said 59 civilians, rebels and soldiers were killed in and around
Damascus alone on Wednesday, with 133 dead overall across the country.
Rebel forces have in recent days stepped up their attacks on President
Bashar al-Assad's power base in the capital and on Wednesday shelled
Mazzeh 86, a district mainly populated by members Assad's Alawite
minority, an offshoot of Shiite Islam.
Sectarian divides are a key factor in Syria's armed rebellion, with
many in the Sunni Muslim majority frustrated at more than 40 years of
Alawite-dominated rule.
Air strikes also pounded the rebel-held town of Saqba just outside the
capital, while helicopters could be seen circling over the East Ghuta
area, some 50 kilometres (30 miles) northeast of Damascus, the
Britain-based Observatory said.
It says more than 37,000 people have died since the uprising against
Assad's regime erupted in March 2011, first as a protest movement and
then an armed rebellion after the regime cracked down on
demonstrations and opposition activists.
In Geneva, International Committee of the Red Cross President Peter
Maurer told reporters the aid group was finding it difficult to manage
a crisis that has also forced hundreds of thousands from their homes.
"The humanitarian situation is getting worse despite the scope of the
operation increasing," he said. "We can't cope with the worsening of
the situation."
The ICRC, which works in collaboration with the Syrian Arab Red
Crescent to deliver aid, has "a lot of blank spots" with regard to the
needs of the people on the ground, he said.
"There is an unknown number of people in Syria who do not get the aid
they need," Maurer said, adding that the Red Cross had no strategy in
the country beyond taking action when and where it could.
In the Qatari capital Doha, meanwhile, the umbrella opposition SNC
elected a new 40-member all-male general secretariat with Islamists,
including at least five Muslim Brotherhood members, accounting for
about a third.
-- Failed to elect woman or Alawite --
------------------------------------
Despite calls from Washington for the SNC to be more representative,
the group's about 400 members failed to elect a single woman or any
Alawites to the leadership.
SNC officials said four members representing women and minorities,
including a Christian and an Alawite, would now be added to
secretariat, which will on Friday elect 11 members to appoint a
successor to outgoing president Abdel Basset Sayda.
Under pressure from Washington to reshape into a widely representative
body, the opposition is to hold broader talks Thursday on an
initiative by prominent dissident Riad Seif to form a new
government-in-exile.
With the violence in Syria often spilling over the country's borders,
Turkey confirmed Thursday it was in talks with NATO about the
possibility of deploying Patriot surface-to-air missiles on its soil,
but insisted it was purely for defence.
"Patriots... are being discussed within NATO. It is only natural for
us to take any measure for defence reasons," President Abdullah Gul
told reporters, adding that it was "out of the question for Turkey to
start a war with Syria".
Media reports have suggested the missiles could be deployed on the
Turkey-Syria border to create a partial no-fly zone and allow for the
establishment of safe havens inside the country.
Turkey on Thursday also forced an Armenian plane carrying humanitarian
aid for Syria to land for an inspection of its cargo, the Anatolia
news agency reported.
The cargo plane landed at Erzurum airport in eastern Turkey where
teams of police and troops with sniffer dogs began their searches, it
said. It was the second time in a month that the Turkish authorities
have ordered an Armenian plane heading for Syria to land for security
checks.
burs-mm/hc
November 8, 2012 Thursday 10:48 AM GMT
Clashes in Damascus as Red Cross says can't cope with crisis
DAMASCUS, Nov 8 2012
Syrian rebels clashed with troops in Damascus Thursday amid mounting
violence in the capital, as the Red Cross said it was struggling to
cope with the country's worsening humanitarian crisis.
The main opposition Syrian National Council (SNC), meanwhile, elected
a new leadership heavily packed with Islamists, as Syria's neighbour
Turkey said it reserved the right to defend itself amid talks with
NATO on deploying Patriot missiles.
Fresh fighting broke out overnight in Damascus in the disputed
southern neighbourhood of Qadam and in Mazzeh in the west, said the
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of
activists and medics on the ground.
It said 59 civilians, rebels and soldiers were killed in and around
Damascus alone on Wednesday, with 133 dead overall across the country.
Rebel forces have in recent days stepped up their attacks on President
Bashar al-Assad's power base in the capital and on Wednesday shelled
Mazzeh 86, a district mainly populated by members Assad's Alawite
minority, an offshoot of Shiite Islam.
Sectarian divides are a key factor in Syria's armed rebellion, with
many in the Sunni Muslim majority frustrated at more than 40 years of
Alawite-dominated rule.
Air strikes also pounded the rebel-held town of Saqba just outside the
capital, while helicopters could be seen circling over the East Ghuta
area, some 50 kilometres (30 miles) northeast of Damascus, the
Britain-based Observatory said.
It says more than 37,000 people have died since the uprising against
Assad's regime erupted in March 2011, first as a protest movement and
then an armed rebellion after the regime cracked down on
demonstrations and opposition activists.
In Geneva, International Committee of the Red Cross President Peter
Maurer told reporters the aid group was finding it difficult to manage
a crisis that has also forced hundreds of thousands from their homes.
"The humanitarian situation is getting worse despite the scope of the
operation increasing," he said. "We can't cope with the worsening of
the situation."
The ICRC, which works in collaboration with the Syrian Arab Red
Crescent to deliver aid, has "a lot of blank spots" with regard to the
needs of the people on the ground, he said.
"There is an unknown number of people in Syria who do not get the aid
they need," Maurer said, adding that the Red Cross had no strategy in
the country beyond taking action when and where it could.
In the Qatari capital Doha, meanwhile, the umbrella opposition SNC
elected a new 40-member all-male general secretariat with Islamists,
including at least five Muslim Brotherhood members, accounting for
about a third.
-- Failed to elect woman or Alawite --
------------------------------------
Despite calls from Washington for the SNC to be more representative,
the group's about 400 members failed to elect a single woman or any
Alawites to the leadership.
SNC officials said four members representing women and minorities,
including a Christian and an Alawite, would now be added to
secretariat, which will on Friday elect 11 members to appoint a
successor to outgoing president Abdel Basset Sayda.
Under pressure from Washington to reshape into a widely representative
body, the opposition is to hold broader talks Thursday on an
initiative by prominent dissident Riad Seif to form a new
government-in-exile.
With the violence in Syria often spilling over the country's borders,
Turkey confirmed Thursday it was in talks with NATO about the
possibility of deploying Patriot surface-to-air missiles on its soil,
but insisted it was purely for defence.
"Patriots... are being discussed within NATO. It is only natural for
us to take any measure for defence reasons," President Abdullah Gul
told reporters, adding that it was "out of the question for Turkey to
start a war with Syria".
Media reports have suggested the missiles could be deployed on the
Turkey-Syria border to create a partial no-fly zone and allow for the
establishment of safe havens inside the country.
Turkey on Thursday also forced an Armenian plane carrying humanitarian
aid for Syria to land for an inspection of its cargo, the Anatolia
news agency reported.
The cargo plane landed at Erzurum airport in eastern Turkey where
teams of police and troops with sniffer dogs began their searches, it
said. It was the second time in a month that the Turkish authorities
have ordered an Armenian plane heading for Syria to land for security
checks.
burs-mm/hc