Syrian troops take Deraa mosque, killings of protesters continue in Assad crackdown

Syrian army troops backed by tanks and three helicopters on Saturday took a prominent mosque that had been controlled by residents in Daraa, killing at least four people in and near the religious sanctuary, a witness said. The Omari mosque, located in Daraa’s Roman-era old town, had served as a gathering place for Syrians protesting against the authoritarian regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

Among those reportedly killed on Saturday was Osama Ahmad, the son of the mosque’s imam, Sheikh Ahmad Sayasna. The other three were a woman and her two daughters who were killed when a tank shell hit their home near the mosque, according to the witness.

The rights group, Sawasiah, said early Sunday that Syrian security forces have killed nearly 600 pro-democracy protesters since demonstrations against the Assad regime started in March. Activists also disclosed early Sunday that two prominent members of rights group were arrested by Syrian security. The officials were identified as Hassan Abdel Azim, and Omar Qashash.

Earlier, on Saturday, Syrian security officials also arrest 11 women who marched in a silent all-women protest in central Damascus.

And in what was seen as a late effort to reign in the horses after they had already left the stables, newly-appointed Syrian Prime Minister Adel Safar said on Saturday his government would draw up a “complete plan” of political, judicial and economic reforms, according to state news agency SANA.

SANA quoted Mr. Safar as saying he would set up committees to propose new laws and amendments to legislation in those areas.

The Daraa operation came a day after President Assad unleashed deadly force to crush a revolt that started six weeks ago, killing at least 65 people in Daraa, a border town of 120,000 people near Jordan.

Daraa resident Abdullah Abazeid said the assault on the mosque lasted 90 minutes during which troops used tank shells and heavy machine guns. Three helicopters took part of the operation dropping paratroopers on to the mosque itself, he said.

In the early hours of the morning, military reinforcements poured into Daraa, including 20 armored personnel carriers, four tanks, and a military ambulance, a resident of the city told The Associated Press.

“Since dawn, we've been hearing a heavy exchange of gunfire that is echoing across the city and you do not know what's happening,” Abu Tareq, a resident, told Reuters by phone. “I saw more than 15 tanks that had entered from the Damascus highway heading in the direction of the Old City.”

The head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdul-Rahman, said 65 people were killed Friday, with 36 deaths in the Daraa province, 27 in the central Homs region, one in Latakia and another in the Damascus countryside. Total civilian deaths since the uprising began have reached 535, he said.

The latest deaths came as the United States slapped three top officials in Mr. Assad’s regime—including his brother Maher—with sanctions, and the 47-member United Nations Human Rights Council agreed to launch an investigation of Syria’s crackdown against pro-democracy protesters.

An activist said authorities have asked families of some of those killed Friday to hold small funerals attended by family members only. Similar orders were given last week but most people did not abide by them, the activist added.

The move appeared to be an attempt by authorities to avoid more bloodshed, with funerals in the past weeks turned into demonstrations.

A devastating picture is emerging of Daraa, which has been without electricity, water and telephones since Monday as residents flee across the border. The uprising began in Daraa in mid-March, sparked by the arrest of teenagers who scrawled anti-regime graffiti on a wall.

Sounds of sporadic gunfire were heard in the city Saturday, mainly from the city center area, another Daraa witness said.

He said for the past week, troops had been allowing women to go out to buy bread, but on Saturday they were stopped.

In the coastal city of Banias, a resident said armed forces had withdrawn from the city center after taking up positions there earlier in the month.

The witnesses' accounts could not be independently verified. All spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of government reprisal.

Syria has banned nearly all foreign media and restricted access to trouble spots, making it almost impossible to verify the dramatic events shaking one of the most authoritarian regimes in the Arab world.

Large demonstrations were reported Friday in the capital of Damascus, the central city of Homs, the coastal cities of Banias and Latakia, the northern cities of Raqqa and Hama, and the northeastern town of Qamishli near the Turkish border.

Syrian TV said Friday that military and police forces came under attack by “armed terrorists” in Daraa and Homs, killing four soldiers and three police officers. Two soldiers were captured but were later rescued by the army, state TV said. The station also said one of its cameramen was injured in Latakia by an armed gang.

Meanwhile, diplomats say the UN’s nuclear watchdog agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency, is setting the stage for potential UN Security Council action on Syria as it prepares a report assessing that a Syrian target bombed by Israeli warplanes in 2007 was likely a secretly built nuclear reactor meant to produce plutonium.

(Dina Al-Shibeeb of Al Arabiya can be reached at: [email protected]. Mustapha Ajbaili, also of Al Arabiya, can be reached at: [email protected])