Strike in Syria
December 11, 2011
Syrian troops waged battle with army defectors on Sunday in one of the biggest clashes in the country's nine-month uprising, residents and activists said.
Military forces reportedly stormed the town of Busra al-Harir near the border with Jordan on Sunday, with witnesses reporting machinegun fire from tanks. Activists and residents also said explosions and heavy gunfire could be heard from Lujah, an area north of the town where army defectors have been hiding and attacking military supply routes.
"Lujah has been the safest area for defectors to hide because it is difficult for tanks and infantry to infiltrate," said an activist quoted by the Reuters news agency. "The region has caves and secret passageways and extends all the way to the Damascus countryside."
The violence also spilled into Jordan for the first time, with about a dozen Syrians attacking their embassy in Amman. At least two diplomats and four other consulate employees were reported injured.
Workers walk out
As the fighting played out, workers across the capital went on strike to protest the violent crackdown on protests by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
"For the first time we have seen business close in multiple districts in Damascus and spread to most of the suburbs and provinces," said Rima Fleihan, a member of the opposition Syrian National Council. "The aim is to reach civil disobedience that encompasses all sectors and forces the regime down."
Despite increasing pressure from the West and the Arab League, Assad has refused to end the crackdown, which the UN says has killed more than 4,000 people since March. The Syrian government says it is fighting armed rebels supported by foreign enemies.
As international sanctions and isolation fail to bring and end to the conflict, observers are wary of the uprising turning into civil war.
"The cost will be more human lives but I am afraid it is less costly than an armed uprising and the regime dragging the country into a Libya-type scenario," Fleihan said.
Author: Andrew Bowen (AP, Reuters)
Editor: Andreas Illmer