The Daily Monitoring Report – Monday – 15-07-2012

                   JULY 15^th, 2012

- Some 88 people were martyred at the hands of the Assad troops. Moreover, the artillery and aerial shelling continued against many cities and towns of Rif Dimashq,Homs,Hama, Daraa, Idleb andAleppo. In addition, clashes erupted between the Assad forces and the Free Syrian Army (FSA) in many various regions. Add to that, prisoners’ rebellion was reported in the two prisons of Deir Ez Zor andAleppo. (2)

Field situation 

- Tens of thousands of people of the Palestinian Yarmouk Camp near the capitalDamascus held anti-regime demonstrations, raising the revolution’s flag and calling for toppling the Assad regime. This came during escorting the Camp’s victims of the Palestinians to their final resting place who were killed two days ago in violent clashes with the Syrian security forces, the pro-Assad regime Shabiha and Ahmed Gebril group. (1)

- Evening demonstrations erupted- calling for the overthrow of the regime and expressing solidarity with the victims of Tremseh massacre- in Salahuddin district in Aleppo, Al Atarib region in the countryside of the city and many other districts in the capital Damascus such as Al-Kadam and Nahr- Aisha, in addition to many other marches staged in many towns and villages of Rif Dimashq whose chants asserted that the revolution is on till the regime is toppled. (2)

-Hama’s merchants went on strike for condemning the massacre of Tremseh village that claimed the lives of more than 200 people. (2)

Internal situation

- The international monitors entered yesterday (Saturday) the Tremseh village, after two days of committing the massacre. In addition, they asserted the use of heavy weapons and attack helicopters in bombing the village. (1)

- The international monitors’ mission inSyria said that what had happened in Tremseh village is “an extension of an operation of the Syrian Air Forces”, describing the current conditions inHama governorate as being very disordered and unpredictable. It also added that the Syrian Air Forces continued targeting the densely populated areas in the north ofHama on a massive scale, noting that what had happened in Tremseh “Is the worst since the eruption of the revolution 16 months ago”. (1)

- “We were surrounded from four sides … with tanks and armored vehicles, and the helicopters were hovering above,” said an unidentified man on amateur video footage purportedly filmed in Tremseh and posted on the Internet on Saturday. “They burned people in front of our eyes, they held the men like this and stabbed them,” he said, pointing to his chest and then to an artery in his throat. He said his cousin’s throat was slit. “They took out people’s eyes.” He added. (2)

- Pictures showed human remains of youth, girls and infants thrown above each other, while a young man said “Even the mosque was bombed by them”. In addition, another man said that “more than 220 corpses were put in this mosque”. (2)

Activities of Civil Organizations

- The Arab Organization for Human Rights (AOHR) condemned Tremseh massacre, calling for forming a criminal investigation committee to probe such carnage and other massacres took place inSyria. (2)

Political Mobility

- A joint military command of the Syrian revolution under Maj. Gen. Adnan Salo was announced. Representatives of different armed opposition factions and 18 brigadiers would be included in the new command. The new Joint Command is meant to represent all commanders of the Free Syrian Army (FSA)’s divisions. (1)

- Colonel Malik al-Kurdi, second-in-command of the Free Syrian Army (FSA), denies that Colonel Riad Al-Asaad, commander of the FSA, had reached an agreement with Maj. Gen. Adnan Salo with regard to establishment of the FSA general command, pointing out that there were talks in that regard, but there has been no agreement. (1)

- In a statement, the FSA Joint Command at home, Coordination and Liaison Office and all military councils, as well as their affiliate brigades and companies welcome establishment of the “joint military command of the Syrian revolution” joint military command of the revolution, the Syrian,” under the retired Maj. Gen. Adnan Salo, considering the new command as a “qualitative addition to the advisory role meant to increase cooperation and solidarity with the FSA Joint Command at home.” (1)

Political Stances

Arab

-Tunisia’s president Moncef Marzouki urgesIranandRussiato stop supporting Bashar Al-Assad’s regime, calling for forming an Arab peacekeeping force inSyriaduring the post-Assad transitional period. (2)

International

- French President Francois Hollande said that he had a talk with his Russian counterpart President Vladimir Putin on Syria and told him that, “The worst thing that could happen is a civil war in Syria,” adding, “Let’s work together to find a political solution to avoid civil war. There is still time.” (1) (2) (3) (4)

- Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird condemned the “terrible” Tremseh massacre. (1)

- Brazilian government strongly condemned the Syrian Army’s use of heavy artillery against civilians in Tremseh, calling on the Assad regime to respect the UN-Arab envoy Kofi Annan’s plan. (1)

-Russia’s First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Alexander Pankin considered calls by some Syrian opposition representatives to exclude the UN-Arab envoy to Syria Kofi Annan from settlement process inSyriaas inappropriate, adding that the opposition itself is involved in committing acts of violence. (2)

- A report by the Daily Telegraph alleges that Al-Qaeda Organization has infiltrated intoSyriaand is working to establish footholds in thenorthern provincesof country. Whilst the militant Islamic organization’s influence remains small, home-grown Jihadist groups that are linked with, or sympathetic to the ideals of movement are growing, added the report. (2)

Sources

1	Asharq Al-Awsat
2	Aljazeera.net
3	Reuters
4	The AFP
5	The AP
6	The Guardian
7	The Telegraph