Syria says rebel groups to blame for massacre
Source: Agencies |
June 1, 2012, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
Syria said yesterday that a preliminary investigation showed that anti-government armed groups committed a massacre last week, with the aim of encouraging foreign military intervention against the Syrian government.
Brigadier General Qassem Jamal Suleiman, head of an investigation committee formed by the government, said the victims were families "who refused to oppose the government and were at odds with the armed groups."
He said many of the victims were relatives of a member of the Syrian parliament.
The massacre in the country's central region of Houla, where more than 100 people were killed last week, was one of the deadliest incidents since the uprising against President Bashar Assad's government began in March last year.
The United Nations said several weeks ago that more than 9,000 people had been killed in the past 15 months while activists put the number at about 13,000.
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon yesterday called on Syria to stop its attacks, saying UN observers monitoring the cease-fire were not there to watch the killing of innocent people.
The warning came as activists reported that Syrian troops were shelling Houla.
The latest shelling and sniper fire killed at least one person and made scores flee in fear of more government attacks.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Local Coordination Committees activist groups said government troops unleashed heavy machine guns but also used mortars in Houla, a collection of poor farming villages in the central Homs province. Both groups said a young man was killed by sniper fire.
The observatory reported that Houla residents were fleeing to nearby towns and villages yesterday, "fearing a new massacre."
Speaking in Istanbul, Ban said that "the massacre of civilians of the sort seen last weekend could plunge Syria into a catastrophic civil war - a civil war from which the country would never recover."
Ban told a summit of the Alliance of Civilizations, a forum promoting understanding between the Western and Islamic worlds: "We are there to record violations and to speak out so that the perpetrators of crimes may be held to account." But he added: "Let me state plainly, however: The UN did not deploy in Syria just to bear witness to the slaughter of innocents."
In Denmark yesterday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said every day of slaughter in Syria was strengthening the case for tougher international action.
Brigadier General Qassem Jamal Suleiman, head of an investigation committee formed by the government, said the victims were families "who refused to oppose the government and were at odds with the armed groups."
He said many of the victims were relatives of a member of the Syrian parliament.
The massacre in the country's central region of Houla, where more than 100 people were killed last week, was one of the deadliest incidents since the uprising against President Bashar Assad's government began in March last year.
The United Nations said several weeks ago that more than 9,000 people had been killed in the past 15 months while activists put the number at about 13,000.
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon yesterday called on Syria to stop its attacks, saying UN observers monitoring the cease-fire were not there to watch the killing of innocent people.
The warning came as activists reported that Syrian troops were shelling Houla.
The latest shelling and sniper fire killed at least one person and made scores flee in fear of more government attacks.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Local Coordination Committees activist groups said government troops unleashed heavy machine guns but also used mortars in Houla, a collection of poor farming villages in the central Homs province. Both groups said a young man was killed by sniper fire.
The observatory reported that Houla residents were fleeing to nearby towns and villages yesterday, "fearing a new massacre."
Speaking in Istanbul, Ban said that "the massacre of civilians of the sort seen last weekend could plunge Syria into a catastrophic civil war - a civil war from which the country would never recover."
Ban told a summit of the Alliance of Civilizations, a forum promoting understanding between the Western and Islamic worlds: "We are there to record violations and to speak out so that the perpetrators of crimes may be held to account." But he added: "Let me state plainly, however: The UN did not deploy in Syria just to bear witness to the slaughter of innocents."
In Denmark yesterday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said every day of slaughter in Syria was strengthening the case for tougher international action.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
