Syrian army surrounded this morning the port city of Banias in the north-west of the country after four people died there yesterday in clashes with police, only two days after the violence that took place in other cities in the Arab state which have resulted in dozens of deaths, reported BBC.
The Army carried out 17 tanks around Banias, the electricity supply was interrupted and schools and shops were closed in this city located 280 km north-west of Damascus, said a human rights activist, quoted by AFP. “The army fired several times trying to incite people to retaliate, but no protestor opened fire”, he added.
According to witnesses, the police and a group of pro-government activists opened fire yesterday in Banias on several hundred people gathered at a protest march. A witness revealed that the names of those killed have been announced on loudspeakers at a mosque in the city.
The public TV station announced later that the army intervened after nine soldiers were killed in an ambush outside the city. Friday, Syrian security forces have suppressed another demonstration in the Deraa city, located on the border with Jordan.
The international community, including the United States, condemned the excessive violence used against demonstrators who took to the streets to demand political and economical reforms. The EU urged the Syrian regime, through the voice of Catherine Ashton, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union, to halt violence against demonstrators and begin reforms immediately as promised.
Today, in the capital city, Syrian students staged a protest inside the Faculty of Political Science, University of Damascus. “Students gathered in solidarity with victims of Deraa and Banias, chanting «With our soul and our blood»”, said Abdel-Karim Rihaoui, the President of the Syrian Human Rights League. Another group chanted slogans ‘for’ President Bashar Al-Assad, said Rihaoui said, adding that “security forces intervened and arrests were made”.