Free Syrian Army (FSA) claimed responsibility for the
Damascus attack and said the suicide bomber that carried the operation
inside the national security headquarters was a bodyguard working for a
Syrian senior official. (Image from YouTube)
The Free Syrian Army (FSA) claimed responsibility for the bombing
of the national security headquarters in Damascus, in a video released
on Wednesday.
FSA said the coordinated attack was launched with inside elements close to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s inner circle, and warned Assad’s regime that there will be more similar operations in the future.
FSA said the coordinated attack was launched with inside elements close to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s inner circle, and warned Assad’s regime that there will be more similar operations in the future.
The bombing killed defense
minister, General Daoud Rajha, and President Bashar al-Assad’s
brother-in-law, Assef Shawkat. The latter is the country’s deputy
defense minister and a former military intelligence chief.
Soon after Rajha’s killing, Syria appointed Fahad Jasim al-Furaih as the new defense minister.
Accounts, however, differed on how the operation was carried,
A Syrian official told Reuters that the suicide bomber that carried the operation was a bodyguard for one of Assad’s senior officials.
But activists said that a bomb was implanted in the building, and that there was no suicide bomber.
Syrian TV did not broadcast any footage of the incident.
George Sabra, spokesman for the Syrian National Council (SNC), opposition group, told Al Arabiya that the bombing “is a new beginning in the crsis, and it will bring about more protests against the regime.”
Defected colonel, Abed al-Hamid Zakaria, warned that the regime’s gang-like militia could use chemical weapons and that the chaos in the country to spread in the region. “The third Assad republic, not only in Syria, has begun,” he added.
Soon after Rajha’s killing, Syria appointed Fahad Jasim al-Furaih as the new defense minister.
Accounts, however, differed on how the operation was carried,
A Syrian official told Reuters that the suicide bomber that carried the operation was a bodyguard for one of Assad’s senior officials.
But activists said that a bomb was implanted in the building, and that there was no suicide bomber.
Syrian TV did not broadcast any footage of the incident.
George Sabra, spokesman for the Syrian National Council (SNC), opposition group, told Al Arabiya that the bombing “is a new beginning in the crsis, and it will bring about more protests against the regime.”
Defected colonel, Abed al-Hamid Zakaria, warned that the regime’s gang-like militia could use chemical weapons and that the chaos in the country to spread in the region. “The third Assad republic, not only in Syria, has begun,” he added.
Warning on conflict spillover
Meanwhile, the U.N. Security Council has expressed “grave concern” about cross-border attacks on Lebanon from Syria.
The 15-nation council issued a statement late Wednesday calling for respect for Lebanon’s sovereignty following a bombing that killed three top security officials close to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus.
Tens of thousands of Syrian refugees have fled across the border in recent months and the Lebanese army has moved troops from the border zone with Israel to the Syrian frontier, where there have been deadly incidents in recent weeks.
“Security Council members expressed grave concern over repeated incidents of cross-border fire, incursions, abductions, and arms trafficking across the Lebanese-Syrian border as well as other border violations,” said the statement, which came after a briefing on Lebanon on Monday.
“They underlined the importance of full respect for Lebanon’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and the authority of the Lebanese state in accordance with Security Council resolutions.”
The council praised efforts by Lebanese President Michel Sleiman to maintain political unity during the crisis. The Syrian uprising has raised tensions in Lebanon, where rival factions are divided over support for Assad’s regime.
Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, in a TV speech gave his condolences to the Syrian regime. He warned that toppling Assad’s regime will only be beneficial to Israel.
The 15-nation council issued a statement late Wednesday calling for respect for Lebanon’s sovereignty following a bombing that killed three top security officials close to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus.
Tens of thousands of Syrian refugees have fled across the border in recent months and the Lebanese army has moved troops from the border zone with Israel to the Syrian frontier, where there have been deadly incidents in recent weeks.
“Security Council members expressed grave concern over repeated incidents of cross-border fire, incursions, abductions, and arms trafficking across the Lebanese-Syrian border as well as other border violations,” said the statement, which came after a briefing on Lebanon on Monday.
“They underlined the importance of full respect for Lebanon’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and the authority of the Lebanese state in accordance with Security Council resolutions.”
The council praised efforts by Lebanese President Michel Sleiman to maintain political unity during the crisis. The Syrian uprising has raised tensions in Lebanon, where rival factions are divided over support for Assad’s regime.
Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, in a TV speech gave his condolences to the Syrian regime. He warned that toppling Assad’s regime will only be beneficial to Israel.
Syria: Bashar al-Assad 'flees to Latakia'
An information blackout was in place around President Bashar al-Assad after an attack in Damascus that killed three top regime officials amid reports the Syrian leader had fled to his family's coastal stronghold.
Image 1 of 2
Bashar al-Assad Photo: AFP
Opposition sources and a Western diplomat
stated Mr Assad was in the coastal city of Latakia, directing the
response to the assassination of his top lieutenants, according to
Reuters.
Mr Assad, who has not made a
public appearance since Wednesday's bombing, was said to be commanding
the government operation but it was not clear whether Assad travelled to
the Mediterranean Sea resort before or after the attack.
"Our
information is that he is at his palace in Latakia and that he may have
been there for days," said a senior opposition figure, who declined to
be named.
David Cameron, the prime
minister called on Mr Assad to give up power to avert more chaos and
bloodshed. Speaking during a visit to Afghanistan, Mr Cameron said: "I
have a very clear message for President Assad. It is time for him to go.
"It is time for transition in the regime. If there isn't transition it's quite clear there's going to be civil war."
Gen Daoud Rajha, the defence minister, Gen Hassan
Turkmani, assistant to the vice-president and head of the crisis cell,
and Assef Shawkat, the husband of Mr Assad's sister have been confirmed
as casualties of the attack and a number of other senior leaders were
injured.
Major Gen Robert Mood, head of the UN monitoring mission, warned that the violence was spiralling, as President Assad appeared to have gone to ground.
Security forces loyal to President Assad pounded rebel hideouts in Damascus on Thursday in retaliatory attacks for the blast that killed three top anti-insurgency leaders.
Hundreds fled Damascus flashpoint districts amid a surge of fighting following a bomb attack which killed three security chiefs, as residents reported shops closed and food shortages.
The troops used helicopters and heavy artillery against the rebels, while snipers took up positions on rooftops on the outskirts of the city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. "Explosions are heard throughout the capital," it said.
"The regime has gone mad," Rima Flaihan, spokeswoman for the Local Coordination Committees in Syria, said in a telephone interview today from Jordan.
She said at least 200 people were killed across Syria yesterday. "The regime is in a horrid state of savagery, seeking revenge for the killings of the military leaders," she added.
The military gave residents 48 hours to leave areas where clashes are taking place between security forces and rebels who have launched the "Damascus Volcano" offensive ahead of the start of Ramadan fasting on Friday.
"These extremely violent clashes should continue in the next 48 hours to cleanse Damascus of terrorists by the time Ramadan begins," a security official said.
The bomb attack that killed three top security chiefs in Damascus marks "the beginning of the end of the regime" of President Assad, an opposition spokesman said on Thursday.
"We see that what happened (on Wednesday) is a sign of the beginning of the end of the regime," Syrian National Council spokesman George Sabra.
"It was a major blow to (Assad) and the regime's repressive security apparatus."
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights watchdog said that in the western district of Mazzeh alone, hundreds of people were on the move, "fearing a large-scale operation by regime troops."
Meanwhile the Israeli defence minister, Ehud Barak said Syria's alliance with Iran and Lebanon's Hizbollah was weakened by the attack.
"The blow is a severe one," said Barak on a tour of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, a day after a blast tore through Syria's national security headquarters, killing the defence minister and two other top officials close to President Bashar al-Assad.
"It's also a severe blow to the radical axis, to the Iranians and Hizbollah, who are the sole supporters of the Assad family," he said in remarks communicated by his spokesman.
The minister said it was possible to watch the battle playing out less than a kilometre (half a mile) away in the Syrian village of Jebata al-Khashab.
"We can see the actual fighting, the mortars, hear the bullets between the Syrian army to rebels or the opposition," he said.
"This shows how the disintegration (of the Assad regime) is not abstract, it is real, it's approaching, and what happened yesterday in Damascus will expedite the downfall of the Assad family," he said.
The FSA, which had predicted an imminent "surprise" on the eve of the attack, claimed that its assault on the capital, named "Damascus Volcano", would take them to the verge of victory.
"This is the volcano we talked about; we have just started," said Qassem Saadedine, the group's spokesman. "We have smashed the inner circle of Bashar," another rebel official boasted.
A government sources said Assad's mother and sister have gone to Tartus province for the funeral of his brother-in-law Assef Shawkat who was killed in Wednesday's Damascus bomb.
"Anissa al-Assad, the widow of (ex-president) Hafez al-Assad and her daughter Bushra travelled on Wednesday evening along with several women from their entourage to Latakia and they then made their way to Tartus."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9412126/Syria-Bashar-al-Assad-flees-to-Latakia.html
Major Gen Robert Mood, head of the UN monitoring mission, warned that the violence was spiralling, as President Assad appeared to have gone to ground.
Security forces loyal to President Assad pounded rebel hideouts in Damascus on Thursday in retaliatory attacks for the blast that killed three top anti-insurgency leaders.
Hundreds fled Damascus flashpoint districts amid a surge of fighting following a bomb attack which killed three security chiefs, as residents reported shops closed and food shortages.
The troops used helicopters and heavy artillery against the rebels, while snipers took up positions on rooftops on the outskirts of the city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. "Explosions are heard throughout the capital," it said.
"The regime has gone mad," Rima Flaihan, spokeswoman for the Local Coordination Committees in Syria, said in a telephone interview today from Jordan.
She said at least 200 people were killed across Syria yesterday. "The regime is in a horrid state of savagery, seeking revenge for the killings of the military leaders," she added.
The military gave residents 48 hours to leave areas where clashes are taking place between security forces and rebels who have launched the "Damascus Volcano" offensive ahead of the start of Ramadan fasting on Friday.
"These extremely violent clashes should continue in the next 48 hours to cleanse Damascus of terrorists by the time Ramadan begins," a security official said.
The bomb attack that killed three top security chiefs in Damascus marks "the beginning of the end of the regime" of President Assad, an opposition spokesman said on Thursday.
"We see that what happened (on Wednesday) is a sign of the beginning of the end of the regime," Syrian National Council spokesman George Sabra.
"It was a major blow to (Assad) and the regime's repressive security apparatus."
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights watchdog said that in the western district of Mazzeh alone, hundreds of people were on the move, "fearing a large-scale operation by regime troops."
Meanwhile the Israeli defence minister, Ehud Barak said Syria's alliance with Iran and Lebanon's Hizbollah was weakened by the attack.
"The blow is a severe one," said Barak on a tour of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, a day after a blast tore through Syria's national security headquarters, killing the defence minister and two other top officials close to President Bashar al-Assad.
"It's also a severe blow to the radical axis, to the Iranians and Hizbollah, who are the sole supporters of the Assad family," he said in remarks communicated by his spokesman.
The minister said it was possible to watch the battle playing out less than a kilometre (half a mile) away in the Syrian village of Jebata al-Khashab.
"We can see the actual fighting, the mortars, hear the bullets between the Syrian army to rebels or the opposition," he said.
"This shows how the disintegration (of the Assad regime) is not abstract, it is real, it's approaching, and what happened yesterday in Damascus will expedite the downfall of the Assad family," he said.
The FSA, which had predicted an imminent "surprise" on the eve of the attack, claimed that its assault on the capital, named "Damascus Volcano", would take them to the verge of victory.
"This is the volcano we talked about; we have just started," said Qassem Saadedine, the group's spokesman. "We have smashed the inner circle of Bashar," another rebel official boasted.
A government sources said Assad's mother and sister have gone to Tartus province for the funeral of his brother-in-law Assef Shawkat who was killed in Wednesday's Damascus bomb.
"Anissa al-Assad, the widow of (ex-president) Hafez al-Assad and her daughter Bushra travelled on Wednesday evening along with several women from their entourage to Latakia and they then made their way to Tartus."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9412126/Syria-Bashar-al-Assad-flees-to-Latakia.html
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