Activists report 8 people killed in latest Syria crackdown

[News_Editor]

Activists report 8 people killed in latest Syria crackdown

2011-07-27 22:07:17 GMT+7 (ICT)

DAMASCUS (BNO NEWS) -- At least eight people were killed on Wednesday by Syrian security forces outside the Syrian capital of Damascus, according to activists.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said eight people, including an 11-year-old boy, were killed amid gunshots by security forces and rock-throwing by residents in the town of Kanaker, CNN reported.

"At 3 a.m. Wednesday, Syrian security forces and army soldiers stormed Kanaker amid heavy gunfire. Some residents threw rocks at the tanks and burned tires as many chanted 'Allah is the Greatest' in the west part of the town where seven tanks took positions there," the Observatory said in a statement.

It added: "Fourteen other tanks spread in two other directions. Four tanks withdrew from the eastern section of the town as waves of rocks hit them. Several civilians were injured and are being treated in makeshift clinics and mosques. Residents said the electricity has been cut out. The situation remains tense."

It was not able to independently verify the reports.

The reported bloodshed follows days of violent government crackdowns on protests across the country, including the cities of Aleppo in the west, Deir Ezzor in the northeast, and Douma in the Damascus area. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, more than 1,400 people have died since the unrest began in mid-March.

The U.S. State Department on Monday released a statement to condemn the crackdown by President Bashar al-Assad's government, following the death of 12-year-old Talha Dalal on Saturday who was shot in the head by a Syrian police officer in Damascus on July 15.

"The behavior of Syria's security forces, including other such barbaric shootings, wide-scale arrests of young men and boys, brutal torture, and other abuses of basic human rights, is reprehensible," said Victoria Nuland, a spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department.

In mid-March, pro-democracy demonstrations began in Syria and have continued across the country, which has been ruled by the Baath Party since 1963. Protesters are demanding the ouster of President al-Assad, who took over his father in 2000.

Assad previously said that the recent events in the country are a conspiracy against national unity. The Syrian government has repeatedly claimed that the violent acts have been instigated by terrorists who use military uniforms and weaponry to pose as soldiers while attacking citizens.

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