Tanks roll on Damascus as violence reigns

Heavy fighting grips capital with state source saying "all weapons will be used to finish off terrorists" by Ramadan. Last Modified: 19 Jul 2012 21:28

Government troops have stormed a Damascus district with tanks for the first time, five days on from the outbreak of
fierce clashes in the capital, a UK-based rights group has said.

"The army stormed the Qaboon district with a large number of tanks," said Rami Abdel Rahman, of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), on Thursday.

"This is the first time that tanks enter a Damascus district," Rahman said.

The army's move stoked fears of an imminent massacre in the western quarter of the capital, scene of clashes over the past five days, the SOHR said.

The intensity of ongoing fighting in Damascus was underscored on Wednesday by a devastating bomb attack at the heart of Syria's senior command that killed at least three of President Bashar al-Assad's top brass

Earlier on Thursday, a security source told the AFP news agency on condition of anonymity that the army would show no restraint in its operations.

"These extremely violent clashes should continue in the next 48 hours to cleanse Damascus of terrorists by the time Ramadan begins" on Friday, the source said, referring to the Muslim holy month.

The developments came a day after three top regime officials were killed in an unprecedented attack in the National Security headquarters in Damascus, which was claimed by the rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA).

"After the attack, [the army] has decided to use all the weapons in its possession to finish the terrorists off," the security source said.

Violence killed at least 107 people across Syria on Thursday, the SOHR said, and forced hundreds of Damascus residents to flee their homes for safer neighbourhoods.

Fighting rages

Earlier on Thursday, opposition fighters attacked the main police headquarters in Damascus on Thursday, a witness said.

In-depth coverage of escalating violence across Syria

"Gunfire has been intense for the past hour. It is now dying down but the streets around the police command remain empty," a resident of Qanawat, an old central district where the Damascus Province Police Headquarters is located, told Reuters by phone.
Intense fighting between the opposition and government forces also raged in a half-dozen areas of the Syrian capital Damascus.
Columns of black smoke rose over Damascus on Thursday as troops shelled Qaboon and Barzeh, while fighting raged in al-Midan and Zahira and loud explosions were heard in Mashrou-Dumar, said the Syrian Local Co-ordination Committees.
Violence also erupted in Ikhlas neighbourhood near the government headquarters after rebels attacked forces loyal to Assad, who have deployed armoured vehicles, attack helicopters and increased roadblocks across the city.
Rebels fired rocket-propelled grenades at a police station in the Jdeidet Artouz area, killing at least five officers, the SOHR said.
Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr, reporting from Beirut, said many people believed the latest developments had brought the Syrian conflict to a turning point.
"The Damascus fighting is now in its fifth day, getting close to power base of the Syrian president," our correspondent said. "The prestige of the regime has been shattered. Losing control of Damascus [means] the regime is slowly losing its grip over the country."
More than 200 people, mostly civilians, were killed on Wednesday, including 38 in Damascus, where rebels are pressing an all-out offensive, according to the SOHR.

Wednesday's bombing killed Defence Minister General Daoud Rajha, Assad's brother-in-law Assef Shawkat and General Hassan Turkmani, head of the regime's crisis cell on the uprising, state media said.
Among those wounded were Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar and General Hisham Ikhtiyar, head of national security.
Conflicting accounts have emerged of who carried out the attack on Wednesday and how it was perpetrated.

Patty Culhane reports on the UN's next steps

Syrian state media did not air any images of the blast, as in previous explosions that hit Damascus in the last two months.
Within hours the government named Major General Fahad Jassim Feraj as defence minister, the state news agency SANA reported.
The attack was claimed by the FSA, although another group, the Brigade of Islam, also said it was responsible.
The rebels said the attack, part of Operation Damascus Volcano launched on Monday, "is the first in a series ... aimed at bringing down Assad and the pillars and symbols of the regime, whether civilian or military".
State media initially said it was a "suicide bombing" before apparently retracting and calling it a "terrorist attack".

Spain police clash with austerity protesters

Police use rubber bullets and arrests several people in Madrid as protesters take to the streets across the country. Last Modified: 20 Jul 2012 02:29

Protests against the new austerity cuts have been taking place on a daily basis in Spain [AFP]

Spanish police have fired rubber bullets and charged protesters in central Madrid after a huge demonstration against economic crisis measures. Thick smoke hung in the air early on Friday from plastic bins set alight by protestors chased by police, who hit them with batons when some tried to reach the heavily-guarded parliament at the end of a mostly peaceful march. AFP reporters at the scene said dozens of protesters lingered, some throwing bottles at police, near the Puerta del Sol, the big square at the heart of the city where a march of hundreds of thousands wound up late Thursday. A police official said that officers arrested seven people and six others were injured. Earlier, tens of thousands of public employees, trade union members and other Spaniards have marching in 80 Spanish cities to protest the latest batch of austerity measures approved by the government. Follow our comprehensive Euro Crisis spotlight coverage The ruling conservative Popular Party used its majority in parliament to push through the measures on Thursday. They include a rise in sales taxes and a wage cut for civil servants. Workers yelled in anger branding the crisis measures "robbery". "Hands up, this is a robbery!" protesters bellowed in Madrid, where a sea of demonstrators crammed the avenues of the city centre. Unions had earlier called for the more than 80 demonstrations across the country in the latest and biggest in an almost daily series of protests this month. A sustained string of protests erupted after Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy last week announced the new measures, aiming to save $80bn in order to slash the public deficit. Smaller protests, organised largely via online social networks, have occurred daily since the latest austerity measures were announced on July 11, with some workers taking to the streets during their morning coffee break. Hundreds of protesters, including fire-fighters wearing their helmets and police in black T-shirts, have marched through the streets of Madrid, blocking traffic and chanting. 'No money'  Cristobal Mindoro, Spain's budget minister, defended the measures on Thursday, saying they were needed to lower Spain's borrowing costs. Under pressure from the European Union to stabilize Spain's public finances, the conservative government also cut unemployment benefits and raised the sales tax, with the upper limit rising from 18 to 21 per cent. "There is no money in the coffers to pay for public services. We are making reforms that will allow us to better finance ourselves," he said. Spain had to offer investors sharply higher interest rates on Thursday to raise $3.Ban in debt auctions with maturities of two, five and seven years. The higher rates suggest investors remain worried over the country's ability to repay its debts as it struggles with its second recession in four years and an unemployment rate of over 24 per cent. Critics say the government's new austerity measures will worsen economic conditions for ordinary people. "The new cuts harm the weakest sectors of society without one single measure that involves any effort by companies and the highest earners," the COCO said in a statement. 'Final blow' Unions have called for the protests to be peaceful but clashes broke out on the fringes of some demonstrations in Madrid last week, including one major march by striking coal miners.678 "They have already lowered and frozen our salary and this is the final blow," said Ines Corned, 44, a worker in the justice sector, protesting in Madrid on Tuesday. "These measures they are taking will not stimulate consumption and will not create jobs," said Corned. Spain is due this month to become the fourth eurozone country, after Greece, Ireland and Portugal, to get bailout funds in the current crisis when it receives the first loan for its banks. Eurozone leaders are expected to finalise the deal in a telephone conference on Friday.

Source: Agencies

Syria conflict: Rebels seize Turkey, Iraq border posts

Video was posted on the internet of rebels defacing a poster of President Assad at the Bab al-Hawa crossing

Syrian rebels have captured a number of positions on the country's borders with Turkey and Iraq.

A senior Iraqi official said all the crossings on Syria's eastern frontier had been seized. At one point, two Turkish posts were also in rebel hands.
The push came a day after a bomb claimed the lives of three senior defence officials in Damascus.
At the UN, negotiations are under way on extending the mandate of the observer mission in Syria,
The mandate for the mission is due to expire on Friday.
There are almost 300 UN observers in Syria, but the mission suspended most of its monitoring activity in June, because of the risk from increasing violence.
The US says it might consider a final brief extension of the monitors work, but warned that it could not pin its policy on an unarmed mission.
The UK is said to be proposing an extension for a "final 30 days".
As the situation in Syria becomes more unpredictable and violent, the diplomacy in New York is lagging behind events on the ground, says the BBC's Laura Trevelyan at the UN.
Escalating battle The rebels, perhaps sensing that the regime was too preoccupied with the escalating battle for the capital, stormed all the posts on the Iraqi border, the BBC's Jim Muir in neighbouring Lebanon says.

The major Abu Kamal crossing on the Euphrates river in the east was captured after a clash with government forces, opposition activists said.
More than 20 Syrian soldiers and their commander were killed when a remote army outpost in the far north-east was attacked, Associated Press news agency reported.
Iraq's government, seen as sympathetic to President Bashar al-Assad, has threatened to shut its side of the border and one official told Reuters news agency that it was closing the Abu Kamal crossing.
On the frontier with Turkey, too, rebels were said to have taken control of two posts, at Bab al-Hawa and Jarablus.
Video from the Bab al-Hawa crossing in Idlib province soon emerged of rebels defacing a portrait of President Assad, but they later reportedly withdrew from the position.
First images For four days, rebels have been involved in clashes in areas of the capital as they push their "Damascus volcano" operation against Syrian armed forces.

Damascus-based activist Hassan describes how people are too afraid to venture outside

The deaths of three top security officials has led to a mobilisation of government troops in an attempt to drive the rebels out of the city.
The president's brother-in-law, the defence minister and head of the government's crisis team were killed by a bomb as they attended a meeting at the national security headquarters.
The first images of President Assad since the attack have appeared, largely ending rumours he might have been hurt.
The footage appeared to show Gen Fahd Jassim al-Furayj, chief of staff of the armed forces, being sworn into his new post as defence minister.
Tanks and armoured vehicles were reported to have moved into Qaboun on Thursday, close to the centre of Damascus.
There were heavy casualties, activists said, as a result of an army bombardment of Zamalka in the eastern outskirts of Damascus.

Analysis

Laura Trevelyan BBC News, New York

The mood inside the Security Council chamber was acrimonious after China and Russia vetoed the resolution. Britain's ambassador accused the two nations of protecting a brutal regime by their actions. America's ambassador said the council had failed utterly in the most important task on its agenda.
China's ambassador denounced what he called an uneven resolution which placed pressure on one side, while Russia's representative claimed the resolution would have opened the path to military involvement in Syria's affairs.
Now negotiations are under way to try to extend the mandate of the UN monitoring mission in Syria which is due to expire on Friday.
The mission is supposed to monitor a ceasefire and support a political process - neither of which exist. So the UK is proposing a 30 day "final" extension.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the number of fatalities across the country on Thursday at 250.

'Indefensible' The pace of events in Syria was in marked contrast to the diplomatic stalemate at the UN Security Council, where Russia and China vetoed a Western resolution calling for tougher sanctions on Damascus.
Under the Western-backed plan, the Damascus government would have been threatened with non-military sanctions under Chapter Seven of the UN Charter if it failed to move troops and heavy weapons from populated areas.
But the use of Chapter Seven paved the way for "external military involvement in Syrian domestic affairs", Russia's UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin argued.
The UK, US and France said the UN had failed the people of Syria and UK Foreign Secretary William Hague condemned the use of the veto as "inexcusable and indefensible".

London 2012: Olympic Games security 'not compromised'

The Home Office's Charles Farr said security might be stronger in some respects

The safety of London 2012 has not been compromised by the failure of private contractor G4S to supply security staff, the BBC has been told.

The head of security and counter-terrorism at the Home Office, Charles Farr, said he first learned of problems with G4S in late June.
He said from then on he and ministers monitored the situation closely and put contingency plans in place.
G4S confirmed it could not meet its commitments only on 11 July, he said.
This was, Mr Farr said, after he asked for a guarantee at a meeting of the government's Olympic Security board.
Stronger workforce Mr Farr was interviewed for a BBC Radio 4 documentary, Securing the Games, to be broadcast on Sunday afternoon.
He said the introduction of 3,500 troops to plug the gap meant that in some respects there was an even stronger workforce now involved in the security operation.
Home Secretary Theresa May has said the Home Office was told of a "possible temporary shortfall" in G4S security guards for the Olympics on 27 June.
Mrs May had earlier told MPs the government learned only last Wednesday that G4S could not fully meet its contract.
She said there was a Home Office meeting with G4S and Games organiser Locog on 27 June.

London 2012 - One extraordinary year

• The BBC's home of 2012: Latest Olympic news, sport, culture, torch relay, video and audio

It was at this meeting that G4S admitted "experiencing scheduling problems" which could see a shortfall of "significantly less than 1,000" guards.

"G4S stated that the shortfall was mainly due to the failure to take account of the fact that large parts of their workforce would be unable to begin work before July 27," she said.
But she said G4S had been "unable to specify the size of the shortfall", and it was not until 11 July that the company said it would not meet its workforce target.
Mrs May revealed the details in a letter to Commons Home Affairs Select Committee chairman Keith Vaz.
Immigration Minister Damian Green said G4S first admitted recruiting problems in June, but the difficulties only "crystallised" weeks later.
He told BBC Two's Newsnight: "What happened on June 27 was that G4S said there might be a problem, they were behind, but they were confident that they would have the numbers they promised.
"It was only on July 11 that G4S said 'no, we're not going to get the numbers we wanted', at which point the plans that had sensibly been put in place in advance were actually put into action."
Daily increases Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt announced that a further 1,200 troops were on standby to be called upon if required.
G4S released a statement saying it was making "good progress" and there were daily increases in the number of people working at Olympic venues who had completed training and accreditation.
It has been revealed that the organisers of London 2012 encouraged G4S to keep wages for security staff as low as possible.
Security guards have been offered £8.50 an hour to work at the Olympic venues - below the market rate of about £10 an hour.
And a G4S manager on duty at the Olympic rowing lake at Eton Dorney in Berkshire has told the BBC that security was "a shambles".
He said radios did not work, guards had to use their own mobiles and there were not enough trained CCTV operators.
Contingency plans The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union said thousands of Home Office staff would strike for 24 hours next Thursday, when many thousands of visitors are due to arrive in the UK.
The action will include the UK Border Agency, Identity and Passport Service and Criminal Records Bureau.
The home secretary said the strike was "shameful" as it threatened disruption to people travelling to London for the Games.
Mr Green said contingency plans were in place.
East Midlands Trains staff have also voted to strike during the Olympics, from 6-8 August.
The opening ceremony for London 2012 is now just a week away, and will take place at 21:00 BST on Friday 27 July.
The Great Britain men's football team play Brazil in a warm-up match this Friday and the women's team face Sweden, both at the Riverside Stadium in Middlesbrough.
The GB men's basketball team lost 118-78 to the USA in Manchester on Thursday.

China pledges $20bn in credit for Africa at summit

Mr Hu called for better co-operation with African countries

China has pledged $20bn (£12.8bn) in credit for Africa over the next three years, in a push for closer ties and increased trade.

President Hu Jintao made the announcement at a summit in Beijing with leaders from 50 African nations.
He said the loans would support infrastructure, agriculture and the development of small businesses.
The Chinese leader also called for better co-operation with African countries on international affairs.
As developing nations, China and countries in Africa should work better together in response to "the big bullying the small, the strong domineering over the weak and the rich oppressing the poor" in international affairs, said Mr Hu.
The loan is double the amount China pledged in a previous three-year period in 2009, since which time China has been Africa's largest trading partner.
Trade between the two hit a record high of $166bn (£106bn) in 2011, Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming wrote in the China Daily newspaper, ahead of the two-day forum.
"We want to continue to enhance our traditional friendship... rule out external interference and enhance mutual understanding and trust," said Mr Hu.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is also attending the fifth ministerial meeting of the Forum on China-Africa Co-operation.
'Balanced development' On Wednesday, Mr Hu and Premier Wen Jiabao held bilateral talks with key African leaders, including South African President Jacob Zuma.

China's top five trading partners in Africa (US$, 2010)
Country	Trade value
Source: China Customs data; Frontier Advisory analysis
1. Angola	$24.8bn
2. South Africa	$22.2bn
3. Sudan	$8.6bn
4. Nigeria	$7.8bn
5. Egypt	$7.0bn

Africa is an important source of raw materials to feed China's economic boom and a market for cheap Chinese products, and has benefited from huge infrastructure projects in return, says the BBC's Damian Grammaticas.

But there are concerns Beijing turns a blind eye to corruption and claims its firms have committed labour abuses in Zimbabwe, Zambia and elsewhere, our correspondent adds.
Moves by some Chinese enterprises to hire mostly Chinese nationals have also drawn attention.
Mr Wen said that China would now focus on creating jobs for local residents and working with African countries for sustainable growth.
At an economic conference held in conjunction with the summit on Wednesday, he said China would ''expand imports'' of African products and ''further open'' its domestic market to African countries.
''We need to promote balanced development of trade between China and Africa,'' he said.
He also pledged that China would pay more attention to environmental protection and cultural issues in its dealings with the continent.
''As for some existing problems and new situations in China-Africa co-operation, the Chinese government is actively working with African countries to seek effective solutions and measures,'' Mr Wen said.

Syria conflict: West 'appalled' by Russia China UN veto

The head of the armed forces was named defence minister after Wednesday's bombing at national security headquarters

Russia and China have vetoed a UN Security Council resolution proposing further sanctions on Syria, prompting an angry Western response.

The UK, US and France said the UN had failed the people of Syria.
Syrian troops have been mobilised to oust rebels from parts of Damascus, after a bomb killed three senior figures in the defence establishment.
State TV has broadcast the first images of President Assad since the attack, as he swore in the defence minister.
It was not immediately clear where the swearing-in ceremony of armed forces chief Gen Fahd Jassim al-Furayj took place.
Syrian forces have deployed tanks, artillery and helicopters in parts of the capital and clashes have been reported south-west and north-east of the city.

“Start Quote

The whole city is shaken. Worried about passing any government building or checkpoint, people are choosing to stay at home instead”

Damascus-based reporter

• Damascus: 'City in grip of fear'

'National interests'

Russia and China have wielded their vetoes twice before over Syria and Mr Lyall Grant told the Security Council that the UK was appalled.

"The effect of their actions is to protect a brutal regime. They have chosen to put their national interests ahead of the lives of millions of Syrians."
Under the Western-backed plan, the Damascus government would have been threatened with non-military sanctions under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter if it failed to move troops and heavy weapons from populated areas.
It was the use of Chapter 7 that stirred Moscow's objections. It opened the path to "external military involvement in Syrian domestic affairs," Russia's UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin argued.
But US ambassador Susan Rice said that any suggestion of military force was "paranoid if not disingenuous".
With sporadic battles breaking out for control of Damascus, international envoy Kofi Annan has pushed the international community to take urgent and decisive action.
The Security Council still has to decide whether to renew the mandate of a UN mission in Syria, due to end on Friday. The UK is said to be revising the text of the vetoed resolution proposing an extension for a "final 30 days".
'Imminent fall' The bombing at Syria's national security headquarters claimed the lives of three high-profile figures in President Assad's defence establishment

The three men were at a security meeting at the time of the blast

• Defence Minister and ex-chief of staff Gen Daoud Rajiha
• Deputy Defence Minister Assef Shawkat, married to Mr Assad's sister Bushra
• Assistant to the vice-president and head of crisis management office Gen Hassan Turkomani
• Two other senior officials - interior minister Mohammad Ibrahim al-Shaar and National Security Bureau chief Hisham Ikhtiar- were wounded

Rebel groups said the bomb had been planted the day before the meeting at national security headquarters where it was detonated. They predicted the government's imminent fall.
After the attack the government vowed to root out ruthlessly what it described as armed terrorists backed by outside powers.

Unverified footage purportedly shows people celebrating following the death of the officials

Our correspondent says that video of one attack posted on the internet showed scenes of pandemonium after what activists said was a helicopter gunship attack on a funeral procession at Sitt Zeinab, south of the capital. They said at least 60 people were killed in this incident alone.
Activists also said there was fighting near the cabinet office on the western side of Damascus.
In the capital itself, state media said, security forces launched operations in many areas which have seen clashes in recent days, killing many "terrorists".
Activists reported more tanks moving towards the capital from the west.
But our correspondent says the rebels are on the offensive too, warning state TV and radio to evacuate staff before its headquarters comes under attack.

Zanzibar ferry disaster: Hopes fade for missing

Footage showed the ferry upside down in the sea and survivors in the water

Hopes are fading for more than 100 people still missing after a Tanzanian ferry sank near Zanzibar's main island.

At least 38 people are known to have died in the disaster and about 145 have been rescued.
The MV Skagit ferry had left the city of Dar es Salaam on mainland Tanzania on Wednesday with 290 people on board.
Survivors have told the BBC that the crew gave them no instructions on how to evacuate and merely told them to calm down.
They say there was only one exit and that many people were trapped and went down with the ship.
Some passengers have told how they jumped overboard, clinging to life-boats that automatically inflated, until they were rescued by a tug.

“Start Quote

I tried to hang on to [my nine-month-old son] but he disappeared into the sea”

Tatu Kwiyela

A naval search operation resumed at first light, but was being hampered by bad weather.

"Search operations continue but it is now almost impossible survivors will be found," Zanzibar police spokesman Mohamed Mhina told reporters.
"The weather was very bad, there were big waves and strong wind."
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete said in a statement: "This tragedy affects all of us, and the pain and suffering of those affected is the pain and suffering that we feel."
Tatu Kwiyela, 35, from mainland Tanzania, survived the sinking but lost her nine-month-old son.
"I was swept away by strong waves," she told the Reuters news agency.

"I tried to hang on to him but he disappeared into the sea."
Ali Mohamed Shein, president of the semi-autonomous archipelago of Zanzibar, has declared three days of national mourning.
The ferry left Dar es Salaam at 12:00 local time (09:00 GMT) on Wednesday bound for the main island of the Zanzibar archipelago.
Hamza Kabelwa, director of the Tanzania Meteorological Agency, told the BBC's Swahili service that a warning had been issued for vessels not to make the crossing because of the rough seas.
Zanzibar's transport minister told reporters that two Europeans were among the dead. Police said more than 10 other foreign tourists - including a group of Dutch holidaymakers - had been rescued.
The BBC's Hassan Mhelela in Dar es Salaam says on Thursday morning there were many anxious relatives of missing MV Skagit passengers at the airport waiting to fly to Zanzibar.
The route between Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar is a busy crossing, popular with both Tanzanians and foreign tourists.
Last September, nearly 200 people died when an overcrowded boat with 800 people aboard sank off Zanzibar.

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