The Daily Monitoring Report – Sunday – 08-07-2012

                                                                                   July 8^th, 2012

- Some 70 people were martyred Saturday because of the Assad troops’ continued shelling against Syrian cities, and violent clashes between the regular army and the Free Syrian Army (FSA) in Deir Al-Zour, Aleppo, Daraa, Idlib and other governorates. Meanwhile, the general strike called for in Damascus has received strong response.⁽¹⁾⁽²⁾

Field Mobility

- Several areas in Damascus and its countryside responded to calls made by activists for staging a general strike, which is a step towards civil disobedience. Activists said markets in several districts, including Al-Hariqah, Medhat Pasha, Al-Bzourieh, Al-Maidan, Al-Halbouni, Kafr Sousa, Al-Baramkeh, Al-Qaboun, Al-Tadamon and Al-Hajar Al-Aswad, responded to the general strike. They added that the Assad security forces forced traders to open their shops at gunpoint. Moreover, the security forces broke the locks of the shops in an attempt to end the strike.⁽²⁾⁽⁴⁾

- Yesterday, several demonstrations were staged in some cities and towns, including Deir Al-Zour and Al-Qamishli. Marches were also in some towns of Rif Dimashq.⁽¹⁾⁽²⁾

Political Mobility

- Burhan Ghalioun, ex-leader and current political bureau chief of the Syrian National Council (SNC), calls for backing the international monitors’ mission in Syria. He also said that the number of the international observers should be increased not to be decrease. He also added that those monitors should be armed for protecting them to be an effective deterrent against the violators in the current critical time in Syria.⁽¹⁾⁽²⁾

- Samir al-Nashar, member of the Syrian National Council (SNC), said that he noticed- in the two meetings of Geneva and Cairo- a change in the Russian stance. He also noted that the SNC’s delegation would reassure the Russians, during its visit to Moscow, about their interests in Syria in case they agreed on adopting Annan’s plan under Chapter VII of the U.N. charter, but it does not mean the necessity for the military intervention. He also considered that in case Russia and China imposed sanctions against the Assad regime, it would be deeply affected by them.⁽¹⁾

- Riad al-Shaqfa, mentor of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) group in Syria, said that the revolutionists control over 75% of the Syrian territories. He also referred to the increasing dissensions within the Syrian governmental army, asserting that victory would be shortly achieved, as the ultimate triumph would be in next Ramadan (the Islamic month of fasting) by God’s permission.⁽¹⁾

Activities of Civil Organizations

- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a London-based organization with a network of activists in Syria, reported on Saturday that the death toll in the violence-hit country reached 17,000 over the last 16 months since the beginning of a revolt against President Bashar al-Assad. It is noteworthy that the death toll includes 11,815 civilians, 881 defected fighters and 4,316 governmental elements.⁽²⁾⁽⁴⁾

Political Stances

International

- Kofi Annan, the UN-Arab League envoy to Syria, for the first time admitted that his mission in Syria has failed, hinting at the possibility to withdraw from the Syrian mission. He also added that the international monitors’ task was not to put an end to violence, but rather to make sure that all parties respect their pledges with regard to stopping all military aspects.^(2)(3)(4)

- A source with the U.S. Department of State asserted that the next step- following the “Friends of Syria group” conference in Paris- would be the UN Security Council for passing resolutions under the Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter that would allow for punishing the Assad regime. Moreover, he ruled out that Annan would resign from his post, saying that there are current contacts between Annan and U.S. Department of State in that regard.⁽¹⁾

- The U.S. Department of State calls on the military personnel to defect from the governmental troops. In addition, U.S. State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell praised “the rebels”, describing them as courageous, saying that they may participate in the transitional period.⁽¹⁾

- A source close to Kremlin said that Al-Assad has missed the train, adding “he no longer has a great chance to remain in power”. The source also added that Moscow is not against the Syrian opposition, but “rejects armed foreign intervention in Syria”.⁽¹⁾

- China has censured US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for her criticism of Beijing’s stance toward Syria, saying her remarks were “unacceptable.” The Chinese Foreign Ministry rejected Clinton’s remarks- in which she warned Russia and China over their support for Syria and said Moscow and Beijing “will pay a price” for their stance toward the Syrian issue- as “unacceptable”. In addition, it said that all endeavors to tarnish the image of Beijing would not succeed.^(1)(2)(3)

Sources

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