Posted on 08/16/2011 6:40:04 AM PDT by Former Fetus
BEIRUT — (MCT) Syrian security forces cracking down on opposition strongholds in Latakia herded thousands of people into a stadium and took away their identification cards and cellphones, activists said Monday.
Forces loyal to the regime of President Bashar Assad continued hammering opposition strongholds in the country's main port city, especially in the district of Ramleh, which has been pummeled with tank, gunboat and automatic weapons fire after unusually large antigovernment demonstrations broke out there Friday.
Security forces began ordering residents of the area, which includes a refugee camp housing more than 10,000 Palestinians, to go to a soccer stadium ahead of what they described as a huge military operation, activists said. At least five people were confirmed dead.
"They were told they should leave their homes and go to stadiums because the armed forces were going to flatten the area," said an activist in the city, who asked that his name not be used. "Cellphone networks were cut as thousands of people left their houses and flocked toward the stadium. As they were gathered and directed to the stadium, their IDs were confiscated."
The latest developments are sure to heighten international concern over Syria. The United Nations agency responsible for overseeing Palestinian refugee camps in the Middle East said Monday that it was "gravely concerned" about the situation in Latakia and demanded unhindered access to the facility.
(Excerpt) Read more at jewishworldreview.com ...
Is that supposed to make us feel better? It sure doesn't seem to be working with the UN (gasp!)
The “ONE” is busy on his bus tour
Well, at least now there is a working model for Israel to follow. Actually, they could just drive all of their "Palestinians" into Syria.
The Nika Riots of Byzantium. Stadiums come in handy, the ultimate in crowd control.
On January 13, 532 a tense and angry populace arrived at the Hippodrome for the races. The Hippodrome was next to the palace complex and thus Justinian could watch from the safety of his box in the palace and preside over the races. From the start the crowd had been hurling insults at Justinian. By the end of the day, at race 22, the partisan chants had changed from "Blue" or "Green" to a unified Nίκα ("Nika", meaning "Win!" or "Conquer!"), and the crowds broke out and began to assault the palace. For the next five days the palace was under virtual siege. The fires that started during the tumult resulted in the destruction of much of the city.
Justinian, in despair, considered fleeing, but his wife Theodora is said to have dissuaded him, saying, "Those who have worn the crown should never survive its loss. Never will I see the day when I am not saluted as empress."
The rioters regrouped in the Hippodrome. Imperial troops attacked. Gathered together and with no route open to escape the stadium, about thirty thousand rioters were reportedly killed.
Where is the _resident? Oh yeah, out campaigning. Who will he blame this one upon?
What a silly question! Bush, of course!
Syria is working up to a major and typically Syrian slaughter and our own kenyan president will be quietly or maybe not so quietly satisfied that Assad is “taking care of business.” That is the one chapter of the “Arab Spring” that we should be supporting and, of course, we are once again on the other side. We support and apparently triggered the insurrections in the other Arab states that appear to be Islamist uprisings against more or less secular governments. In Syria the uprising is against the pro-Iranian government and therefore our own government supports its Iranian ally.
They should have driven them into Jordan and Egypt in 1967 or 72 when it would have been much easier and they would not have had American opposition.
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