Syrian troops kill at least 17 protesters

SYRIAN TROOPS yesterday fired tear gas and live rounds at protesters in half a dozen cities across the country, killing at least 17, opposition activists reported.

While numbers of participants seem to have fallen off due to military action, rallies were said to have taken place in restive Deraa, the port of Latakia, Homs, the eastern tribal city of Deir al-Zor and the Damascus suburb of Douma, where the official news agency reported two policemen were killed.

The slogan proposed for the occasion by Syrian Revolution 2011 – a website run by a Muslim Brotherhood member – was “We bow to nobody but God!” The most popular chant appeared to be “We want an end to the regime,” which was adopted by Egyptians during their uprising.

The use of firepower by the government followed a week of international pressure to halt violence and enact reforms demanded by the populace. Among the visitors to Damascus urging restraint were Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu and the deputy foreign ministers of India, Brazil and South Africa.

US secretary of state Hillary Clinton called on states with economic ties to Syria to ratchet up sanctions to force President Bashar al-Assad to halt military operations against protests. After revisiting the US view that he has lost legitimacy, she asked Moscow to cease arms sales to Syria and called on other capitals to take action.

“What we really need to do to put the pressure on Assad is to sanction the oil and gas industry. And we want to see Europe take more steps in that direction.”

This would mean France, Holland, Germany and Italy, major clients for Syrian oil exports, would have to find new suppliers and tackle domestic vested interests.

She called on India and China, which have large energy investments in Syria, to adopt sanctions. This is unlikely to happen.

Mrs Clinton urged the diverse and divided Syrian opposition to unite. “There are Syrian opposition figures outside of Syria and inside. But there’s no address for the opposition. There is no place that any of us who wish to assist can go.”

She added: “There are many communities, minority communities within Syria, who are frankly saying the devil we know is better than the devil we don’t. So part of what we’ve been doing is to encourage the opposition to adopt a kind of unified agenda rooted in democratic change.

“So if you’re a Christian, a Kurd, a Druze [or] an Alawite, if you’re a Sunni inside Syria, there’ll be a place for you in the future.”

When asked why the US has not called for Assad to step down, she replied Washington has been “building on the chorus of international condemnation”.

Turkish president Abdullah Gul has warned Assad not to delay reforms until it is too late, while UN deputy chief for political affairs Oscar Fernandez-Taranco has said nearly 2,000 civilians have been slain since mid-March.