News analysis
Syria
Hama is hit again
Aug 1st 2011, 7:07 by The Economist online | DAMASCUS
AT LEAST 80 and perhaps more than 100 people were killed in Syria on Sunday as the regime of President Bashar Assad launched a series of co-ordinated attacks, unprecedented in their brutality, on protest hubs around the country.
The western city of Hama bore the worst of the attacks on the eve of Ramadan as tanks rolled in at dawn, opening fire at men manning civilian checkpoints and apartment buildings. At least 53 people have been confirmed dead though the final numbers are likely to be far higher. The majority were shot, often in the head; others were run over by tanks. Government forces fired on at least one mosque. Amateur footage showed smoke rising from the city and scenes of carnage.
The assault against the city came after weeks of protests during which thousands have gathered in the central al-Aasi square. Security forces had retreated from Hama after killing over 70 people at protests on June 3rd.
But troops amassed again around Hama at the start of July. Until Sunday they had made short raids rather than full incursions, leaving the city to run itself and set up makeshift barricades for protection.
Continuous gunfire and the thud of tank fire could be heard during telephone calls to residents who described scenes of bloodshed. In a repeat of past assaults elsewhere in the country, water and electricity were cut off before the attack. Although not on the same scale, many compared Sunday's bloodshed to 1982 when at least 10,000 people were killed when the forces of Bashar's father, Hafez Assad, shelled the city to put down an armed Islamist revolt.
Troops backed by tanks also opened fire on Deir Ezzor, in the east, where gunfire was also reported on Monday morning, al-Boukamal on the Iraqi border and Hirak, near the southern protest cradle of Deraa. Over 150 people were rounded up in Moadimiyeh, a small town close to the capital.
The timing of the attack, prior to the start of Ramadan, may have been an attempt to dissuade citizens in other cities from demonstrating. Activists are intent on using the extra nightly prayers during the month of fasting to intensify protests, particularly in Damascus and Aleppo. Unrest has been slowly growing in Syria's cities—though the last two are not yet up in arms—but order has been maintained thanks to the continued loyalty of much of the elite and business communities.
Still, as solidarity protests across the country on Sunday afternoon showed, Syrians have refused to surrender to the regime's violence. They seem unlikely to do so in the future. Protests broke out in several places after the first set of Ramadan prayers on Sunday night, and the following morning.
It has been a bleak start to Ramadan. By Sunday evening in Damascus, there was a growing sense of despair and impotence among opposition figures and international officials. Britain, America and France have issued numerous statements condemning the regime's crackdown in which over 1,600 civilians have been killed. But they have yet to push through a UN resolution in the face of Chinese and Russian opposition and, with little appetite for military intervention, seem unable to do more than watch as the regime continues to oppress its population.
In this blog, our correspondents respond to breaking news stories and provide comment and analysis. The blog takes its name from newsbooks, the 16th- and 17th-century precursors to newspapers, which covered battles, disasters, debates and sensational trials
Advertisement
- Analects | China
- Americas view | The Americas
- Babbage | Science and technology
- Bagehot's notebook | British politics
- Banyan | Asia
- Baobab | Africa
- Blighty | Britain
- Buttonwood's notebook | Financial markets
- Charlemagne's notebook | European politics
- Clausewitz | Defence, security and diplomacy
- Democracy in America | American politics
- Eastern approaches | Ex-communist Europe
- Elysée | France’s presidential election
- Free exchange | Economics
- Game theory | Sports
- Graphic detail | Charts, maps and infographics
- Gulliver | Business travel
- Johnson | Language
- Leviathan | Public policy
- Lexington's notebook | American politics
- Newsbook | News analysis
- Prospero | Books, arts and culture
- Schumpeter | Business and management
Most commented
- The euro crisis: The Greek run
- Foreigners in China: Barbarians at the gate, again
- Brazil’s economy: A bull diminished
- Russia and NATO: Rethink the reset
- Gay marriage: North Carolina begs the question too
- Nationalism online: Backfired
- Turkey’s cultural ambitions: Of marbles and men
- Politics and private equity: Bringing the Bain
- India-China relations and the media: Blame the messenger
- Greece and the euro: Exodus, chapter 1
Over the past five days
Most recommended
- The euro crisis: The Greek run
- Greek politics: Slouching towards the drachma
- Foreigners in China: Barbarians at the gate, again
- Brazil’s economy: A bull diminished
- The euro crisis: Going, going, gone?
- Jacob Zuma: Portrait of a president
- Rival versions of capitalism: The endangered public company
- Bo Xilai v Chen Guangcheng: Who is the mightier?
- Facebook goes public: Not top of the pops
- France and Germany: The Frangela show
Over the past seven days
Advertisement
Readers' comments
The Economist welcomes your views. Please stay on topic and be respectful of other readers. Review our comments policy.
Sort:
The only language the Chinese and Russians speak is that of commerce. It would be amazing if the Libyan TNC repaid the lack of Chinese support by cutting them out of oil contracts. That's the only way the Chinese will ever find that supporting human rights is in their self-interest.
The West should get the war rolling in Syria now that Lebanon is wrapping up earlier than planned and the assets are already in the region. The Chinese and Russians will quickly come onside once they figure out that they are backing the losing horse.
The majority Sunni bros are looking for revenge and blood to take down the Alawi regime. I think it would be hard for the bros to agree to any Assad's compromise unless the genocide like another repeat of Rwanda's Hutu-Tutsi take place with the UN blessings.
The bros probably have prepared a Mubarakic cage for him and family.
a star from hama wrote:
" Putin and Medvedev silence is killing us."
Putin is the evil one. He probably has personal acquaintances in the Syrian security system from his KGB days. I take that for granted. He will stick with the Assad regime to the bitter end; you'll see.
WORKERS OF SYRIA! THE WESTERN MEDIA HAVE NOT REPORTED THE MASS MOVEMENT OF THE WORKERS ON THE STREETS OF ISRAEL. WHY? THEY ARE PORTRAYING YOUR MOVEMENT AS A PURELY "ARAB/ISLAMIC" UPRISING... THEY ARE TERRIFIED THAT THE JEWISH WORKERS WILL JOIN YOU IN REVOLUTION- BUT JOIN YOU THEY HAVE!!! BELIEVE IT!
OBVIOUSLY, AS THE INTERNATIONAL CAPITALIST SYSTEM IS ON THE VERGE OF COLLAPSE, THE LAST THING THEY WANT TO SEE IS AN UPRISING OF ALL THE TOILERS AND THE EXPLOITED, ON A WORLDWIDE SCALE- BUT UPRISING THEY FACE, BELIEVE IT!
SO, HOLD YOUR NERVE, YOUR REVOLUTION IS JUSTIFIED.
MAKE A CALL TO THE WORKERS OF ISRAEL AND THE REGION TO JOIN YOUR REVOLUTION!
NO FAITH IN THE RELIGIOUS FUNDAMENTALISTS WHO WOULD DEVIDE YOU FROM THE ISRAELI AND WESTERN WORKERS!
ONLY A VICTORIOUS SOCIALIST REVOLUTION CAN END THE NIGHTMARE OF SECTARIANISM AND FUNDAMENTALISM!
WORKERS OF THE WORLD UNITE!
Muslims are a weird bunch ...
First they put no vaule to the life of non muslims ... and as we see in Syria, Somalia, Iran, Lybia, ... even less value to the life of its own "muslim" citizens who try to think for themselves ...
And that is the point ...
Muslims are treated as if they were no more than "slaves" of their own political/military/religious elites ...
Maybe muslims are just that ... "slaves" ... and that is the reason for their anger at life ... and at anynoe that dares to question anything at all.
Where are the "muslim intelectuals"? ... are there any?
I am from Hama.The syrian regime cut all kind of landlines and cellphones today.It is like hell here but people morale is high.
By blocking any UN resolution to condemn the bloody regime, Russia and China are responsible for the death of innocent syrians.Putin and Medvedev silence is killing us.
The Anglo-French Zionists do not want to see a stable Lebanon or Syria. A perennial civil war will do just fine for their geostrategic interests.
Post Assad regime, I believe that there could be a lebanonisation of Syria with the Hizbollah replacing to lead on the Shiite Alawi minority.
In the face of overwhelming AngloFrench Zionist, Wahabbi, CIA hegemonic forces, whither Assad should go?
He could choose to die fighting a martyr like Gaddafi, Ali Salleh et.al. or surrender and to be hanged like a cowardly dog like Ben Ali, Mubarak et. al.
Is Prez Assad a practising Muslim & is Islam the 'religion of peace'?? Then pray explain to me what's going on in Syria, even in Ramadan?
Actually don't even bother, as it should crystal clear to anyone with even with an iota of brain cells, what's truly happening there.
Baby Assad needs to follow in his Father's footsteps. He needs to give those rebels the full Hama treatment.
And a protracted civil war will nicely weaken Syria before a regional war with Israel erupts, under Iran's direction. Ultimately, Syria will be defeated.
In midst of all the bickering, backfiring, and heated discussion that such a sensitive topic is bound to bring, I wish to emphasize that no people, whether Sunnis, Jews, Atheists, Blacks, Croats... or whatever, deserve to be targeted and massacred in the thousands.
How some people in the comment thread try to justify the intentional, brutal treatment of a specific group of people remains well beyond my understanding.
Arguing politics and religion is one thing, but proudly professing that innocent men, women, and children should be massacred in the name of X or Y is another.
Here we are in the safety of our homes, cuddled behind our screens, analyzing the situation like we know it all with a critical edge. What is a shame is that we are all equally blind to the reality on the ground.
happyfish18 wrote:
Aug 2nd 2011 9:25 GMT
"the Sunni mobs should be persuaded gently or forcibly to go back to their home with the promise of an election without the Assads. This should be followed by an election results where Power can be peacefully transferred from the Assad family." ..... LOL. Sounds just like Chamberlands call for peace in our times. I suppose you would have told the Nazis, please be nice to the Jews. FYI: criminal regimes don't simply give up power because in Islamic states power is life. If you haven't figured it out, this is a true revolution that will be fought to the death. The same way in iraq there was no way Saudi Arabia would allow a Shiite government to emerge, there is no way Iran will allow a Sunni dominated or truly secular state to emerge because such a state would turn first and foremost on Iran ....
For all the Jasmine bloom, I would not like to see the Mob rule orchestrated by the Wahabbi-CIA bros.
On the other hand, the Baath party must urgently talk about geniune reforms with secular opposition parties but that should exclude all religious theocratic elements. Instead of Anglo-French Zionists braying for more blood on the street, the Sunni mobs should be persuaded gently or forcibly to go back to their home with the promise of an election without the Assads. This should be followed by an election results where Power can be peacefully transferred from the Assad family.
Not all humans are created equal. The violence over the past weekend, is clear evidence that the regime feels completely immune from any international law that seeks to maintain a global humanitarian standard. As the weeks pass by, the stalemate between the opposition and governing authority is drawing closer to an extreme in where neither party can return. The regime knows that if they manage to keep the core cities (Damascus and Aleppo) under wraps and stamp out the provinces, they'll prevail. While the opposition knows that if they stop now, they regime will hunt them down (and their entire family) and punish them for their stance against them. This is spiralling into a fight to the end for the participants. Damascenes themselves, empathize with the plight of the citizens of Hama and Homs, but aren't willing to compromise the comforts that they've been promised by the ruling authorities. The rich and affluent have it too good to consider the alternative.
You can blame the US, Israel, France, Russia, China all you want, but in the end all of the Arab countries are poisoned with the same sickness - iron rule and corruption. Where is the voice of the Arab League in the face of this modern age genocide? Hama!!! Again? Are you kidding me? The arrogance and brutality is completely sickening. Everything in life is circular; we may fool ourselves into thinking that humanity is evolving to some "higher moral ground" but the primal instinct of survival of the fittest, is and will always continue to come, round and round again.
A dark period for humanity.
more good news from Islamic countries. this situation provides a prism view ... meaning the complexities of the arab revolts are expressed in the violence they trigger ... it is somewhat akin to Crime and Punishment, but it forces you to come to the understanding of the current state of many Islamic societies:
Karachi violence leaves 34 dead in single day
Pakistan's interior minister has warned of stern action against those involved in the latest round of violence in the country's commercial capital, Karachi, where at least left 34 people have been killed in the past 24 hours.
notice the targets of the violence and the explanation of the violence:
Rehman Malik told reporters on Tuesday that at least 18 of the killings targeted political activists, and that the government had prepared a plan to tackle the deteriorating law and order situation in the city.
Political 'turf war'
Over the years, criminal gangs have been used by political parties in a city-wide war for influence in Karachi, which contributes about two-third of Pakistan's tax revenue.
On Monday, the independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) attributed much of the violence to these political parties, though it also said that criminal elements were "exploit[ing] the breakdown of law and order".
"While gangs of land-grabbers and mafias have tried to exploit the breakdown of law and order, they do not appear to be the main directors of the horrible game of death and destruction; that distinction belongs to more powerful political groups and it is they who hold the key to peace," it said.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2011/08/201182132045842377.html
To lev. d.
I'm talking about Israel as a Regime or System here. I mean a system built on Military power & weakness of Opponents. Free, democratic and developed Arab states will threaten Israel Existence OR at least their outlaw politics in many aspects in the Middle East.
Nirvana-bound wrote:
Aug 2nd 2011 3:17 GMT
"Ramadan is supposed to be a period of prayer, atonement, forgiveness & sacrifice. Wonder how the megalomaniac Assad feels about it. Above the law & societal norms..(??)" ... your distinction is false, consider the below from NYTimes: Shabab represents pure Islam ... how do you explain below as regards your own comments ....
Somalis Starve as Insurgents Block Escape
By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN
The Shabab Islamist insurgent group is setting up a camp where it is imprisoning displaced and starving Somalis who were trying to escape Shabab territory.
Ramadan is supposed to be a period of prayer, atonement, forgiveness & sacrifice. Wonder how the megalomaniac Assad feels about it. Above the law & societal norms..(??)
As they rightly say: "Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely".