Daily Newsletter – 01/10/2013

Safi seriously questions the regime’s move towards a political solution and considers a political game to it gain time, Al Moallem’s remarks separate Geneva from the essential issues

In response to a statement by Lakhdar Brahimi about the regime and the Coalition “moving slow on Geneva 2”, through an exclusive interview to the Media Office of the Syrian National Coalition, spokesman for the Coalition, Louay Safi said that Brahimi’s words were inaccurate , pointing out “that the Coalition suffers from a lack of basic information for any negotiation to achieve the objectives of Geneva, and the Coalition is still waiting for any of this information capable of ensuring the success of this conference. ” The official spokesperson for the Coalition seriously questioned the Assad regime’s efforts to reach a political solution and abandon his arms which he has raised in the face of the Syrian people for more than two years.”  He described the regime as “maneuvering the international community and the Syrian people and seeks to deceive them and deals with the Geneva 2 mockingly as if it were a political toy through which he hopes to gain time.” Safi added, commenting on Brahimi’s statement, “that until now he did not receive solid assurances from Bashar Al Assad’s regime and his Russian allies about the regime’s acceptance of the Geneva statement and its six binding points forming a transitional government with full executive powers.” Safi also criticized statements made by the regime’s Foreign Minister, Walid al-Moallem, who insisted on the remainder of Bashar Al Assad and his regime’s unwillingness to form a transitional government, with full executive powers according to the Geneva protocols.”  Safi added to the above that Brahimi “did not get any guarantees from the regime that indicate a transfer of power, the establishment of a democratic system in which the transitional government will be tasked with forming a founding body to draw up a new constitution and hold free and fair elections.” In the same vein, Monther Makhoos, a member of the political committee of the Coalition, criticized Brahimi and his remarks “which equated the executioner with the victim and tried to through them tried to put himself at the same distance from all parties in Syria.”  He said, “in every political or humanitarian process there are those on the side of justice and others on the side of injustice and there is no way we can put both parties on the same level.

(Source: Coalition)

19 martyrs in Syria until this evening and 57 martyrs yesterday

Local Coordination Committees in Syria documented 57 martyrs in Syria, 19 died by 6 PM this evening, among them two women and two who died under torture. Nine others were martyred in Daraa, four in each of Damascus, Damascus Countryside, Aleppo, and two in Idleb.

(Source: Local Coordination Committees)

The FSA Kills 40 regime soldiers in Barzah District, Destroys three armored vehicles

The FSA killed 40 regime soldiers in the Barzah District in Damascus during the regime’s forces’ latest attempt to raid and take control of the area, considering it to be one of the  most important and strategic areas and a hot zone in the capitol Damascus. The FSA mined the roads leading to the district resulting in the explosion of three armored vehicles and the killing of the soldiers that manned them. As a reminder, the regime sent three different Batallions of its army last week to raid the district with the goal of preventing any advance by the revolutionaries from Ghouta and Barzah towards the center of the capitol city Damascus.

(Source: Coalition + Al Jazeera)

The FSA takes control of Al Kuzbari checkpoint in Al Qadam as the regie shells with machine guns

The FSA in Al Qadam District today took control of Al Kuzbari checkpoint and several of the nearby buildings where regime forces were based. Regime forces targeted Bour Saeed Street with heavy machine guns and rockets resulting in the injury of a number of people and severe damage to residential buildings. A surface to surface missile launched by regime forces landed on one of the buildings in Moadamiat Al Shaam ressulting in its complete destruction as well as causing severe injuries to several civilians. Clashes occurred between the FSA and regime forces in all the surrounding areas. Othe clashes occurred on the road to Harasta between the two sides resulting in direct hits on regime forces’ ranks and thugs based in the surrounding areas.

(Source: Coalition + Local Coordination Committees)

The FSA takes control of Faqee checkpoint in Daraa, Immediate response from regime fighter jets

The FSA targeted Al Faqee checkooint in the Daraa countryside securing direct hits among the ranks of the regime’s forces and also took control of their ammunition. In the mean time the FSA clashed with regime forces in the town of Al Bakara amidst shelling by regime forces with heavy mortars on the area.  Regime fighter jets conducted air strikes on the town of Tafas resulting in the injury of many people and the destruction of many buildings. Regime shelling with heavy mortars and rockets also targeted the towns of Inkhil, Nawa, and Ibta resulting in the injury of several people, some who are still in critical condition.

(Source: Coalition + Local Coordination Committees)

Clashes between the FSA and regime forces in Old Homs Districts

The FSA clashed with regime forces today all around the Old Homs District, in Al Qusoor, and Joorat Al Shayah as the regime forces shelled civilian homes in the area which has been besieged for more than 15 months now. This resulted in the injury of many civilians. Regime forces’ tanks shelled the city of Tel Biseh in the Homs countryside.

(Source: Coalition + Local Coordination Committees)

The FSA takes control of Al Aboud checkpoint in Mourk, Regime forces drop explosive barrels on the eastern countryside

The FSA took control of Al Aboud checkpoint in Mourk in the Hama countryside after clashes with regime forces in the area. Meanwhile regime forces targeted a civilian vehicle in Al Tawba village that was transporting a family escaping fighte jet air sttikes on the area. This attack resulted in severe injuries to the entire famliy. Regime fighter jets dropped explosive barrels on the villages in the eastern Hama countryside resulting in direct hits on civilian homes and field hospitals which treat wounded residents of the area as a result of regime shelling.

(Source: Coalition + Local Coordination Committees)

Announcement of start of the battle of the Mujahideen Advance in Jisr Al Shughoor and significant progress by the FSA on the outskirts of the region

The FSA along with accompanying fighting groups announced the start of the battle of the Mujahideen’s Advance on the northern district in the city of Jisr Al Shughoor. Fierce clashes occurred between the FSA and regime forces in the area. Regime forces also shelled the towns of Masreen, Darkous, Muarat Al Numan in the Idleb countryside with heavy mortars.

(Source: Coalition + Local Coordination Committees)

The FSA targets the Defense building in Aleppo, Damage a MiG fighter jet in Khanaser

The FSA today targeted the Defense building with heavy weapons in which regime thugs are based in Al Khaldiyeh district in Aleppo while fierce clashes occurred between the FSA and regime forces. The FSA damaged a regime MiG fighter jet in the town of Khanaser in the southern countryside. Regime forces retreated from Al Qurbatiyah to Al Hamam after the FSA targeted a number of regime strongholds resulting in the killing of many in the regime’s ranks.

(Source: Coalition + Local Coordination Committees)

In Response to Bashar’s Refusal of Western Countries Attending Geneva Fabius: Bashar Says What He Wants and We Do What We Want

The French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius announced that some European countries will participate in the Geneva 2 conference about the transitional phase in Syria, after which Bashar al-Assad announced his refusal to allow Europe to have any role in this conference. Fabius said in a statement to Radio France Inter: “Bashar al-Assad says what he wants,” adding that “it must Assad must be questioned; because he is accused of committing crimes against humanity and is responsible for the deaths of more than 100,000 people, and killed 1,500 people with gas.” Fabius explained that in Geneva 2 ” there must be a discussion in the presence of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and possibly others” for an agreement on a unified transitional government that respects minorities.”

(Source: Coalition)

Lavrov questions the West’s ability to persuade the rebels to attend Geneva; The Coalition said al-Moualem’s remarks make a mockery of the revolution’s principles

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov questioned the possibility of Western countries to convince the political revolutionaries and the rebels fighting against the Assad regime to go to the Geneva Conference. This comes in conjunction with the statements made ​​by the regime’s Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem about Bashar’s rejection of stepping down from power, in addition denying the recognition of the Syrian National Coalition as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people. He expressed his recognition of what he called the internal opposition and political parties officially licensed within his government. The Syrian National Coalition considers this a mockery of the principles of the revolution and the demands of the Syrian people. Lavrov confirmed Bashar al-Assad’s readiness to hand over Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal this coming May, in confirmation of the Russian-American agreement which political analysts described as a deal at the expense of the blood of the Syrians.

(Source: Coalition)

Committee of the Red Cross receive a request to expose the conditions of missing people and reliable information about their arrest by the regime

The International Committee of the Red Cross in a statement said that “it has received since the beginning of the year 1,000 applications from people who want help finding out what happened to their missing relatives in Syria, most of them are believed to have been detained by regime authorities. The Committee reported that it secured drinking water for 1.5 million people in the center of the country amidst the regime’s failure to provide services in the areas dominated by popular revolution in protest against repression of the Syrians, calling for freedom and the overthrow of the regime. The Committee has provided food rations to 320,000 people in Syria over the past month. The Committee also said it had “organized waste collection from Jisr Al Hajj east of Aleppo in order to improve the health status of half a million people, and continued to spray pesticides in Aleppo for the city’s residents who are more than three million people,” as well as the continued rehabilitation of water, housing and health facilities in more than 23 locations in eight provinces, hosting 4,800 displaced people with the completion of work in another 29 sites in eight provinces hosting 5,800 displaced people.

(Source: Coalition + Al Hayat)

115,000 people have been killed in Syria according to Syrian Observatory for Human Rights; The regime continues military operations against civilians

• According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights more than 115,000 people have been killed in Syria due to ongoing military operations against civlians by Bashar al-Assad’s regime, which have continued for more than two and a half years in Syria. The Center said that it documents the deaths by accessing videos and photos of the bodies seeking to confirm their identities through direct contact with families, paramedics, and activists in Syria.

(Source: Coalition)