As 31 die, Syria goes into freefall

Clashes over the weekend between Syrian soldiers and army defectors and a shooting at a funeral have killed at least 17 members of the military and 14 civilians, the latest sign of the militarisation of the uprising against President Bashar Assad’s regime, a human rights group said on Monday.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the latest fighting took place on Sunday in Idlib, the central province of Homs, and the southern village of Dael. The activist group said the shooting continued on Monday.

Seven of 14 civilians killed on Sunday were gunned down by security forces in the city of central Syria and seven others were killed in other towns. Seventeen security personnel died the same day in clashes with mutinous troops refusing orders to shoot on anti-regime protesters, the watchdog said. “It was like a war scene in Homs where blasts and sound bombs were heard all over town, with heavy machineguns also being fired,” said the Local Coordination Committees (LCC), which organises protests on the ground. “Pro-regime militia prevented ambulances from evacuating the wounded,” the LCC said.

“The situation has been terrible since yesterday (Sunday),” said a resident of Homs. “The clashes were very intense yesterday (Sunday) and I heard shooting this morning as well.” The man, who asked that his name not be used for fear of government reprisals, said he saw troops in armored personnel carriers around tense areas of Homs. “The army is isolating some areas,” he said.