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Subscribe to RSSScores of people were killed in a Damascus suburb as government forces allegedly went on a house-to-house search, rebel forces say. NBC's Lester Holt reports.
AMMAN -- The bodies of at least 200 people were found in a town close to Damascus on Saturday, according to activists who said most appeared to have been killed by Syrian troops "execution style."
The deaths would bring the toll from an offensive by President Bashar al-Assad's forces on Daraya, a working class Sunni Muslim town on the southwestern edge of Damascus, to 270, according to a tally by opposition activists in the capital.
Abu Kinan, an activist in Daraya, said most of the victims were found in houses and basements of buildings and had been shot by troops conducting house-to-house raids.
Due to restrictions on non-state media, it was impossible to independently verify the accounts.
"In the last hour, 122 bodies were discovered and it appears that two dozen died from sniper fire and the rest were summarily executed by gunshots from close range," Kinan said.
"Assad's army has committed a massacre in Daraya."
The Daraya Coordination Committee activists' group said in a statement that among those found with shots to the head were eight members of the al-Qassaa family: three children, their father and mother and three other relatives.
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Their bodies were found in a residential building near Mussab bin Umeir mosque in Daraya, the group said.
Video released by activists showed numerous bodies of young men side-by-side at the Abu Suleiman al-Darani mosque in Daraya, many with what looked like gunshot wounds to the head and chest.
"A massacre," said the voice of the man who appeared to be taking the footage.
"You are seeing the revenge of Assad's forces from the people of Daraya: more than 150 bodies on the floor of this mosque."
Mohammad Hur, another activist in Daraya, said 36 bodies of young men were found in the morning in one building, along with several badly wounded people who could not be transferred to hospitals in the area because the army had occupied them.
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"We are in the process of identifying the bodies and documenting how they died. Initial evidence shows that they were mostly shot at close range in the face, neck and head, execution style," Hur said by telephone.
"Female members from at least two families say that soldiers shot their brothers in front of them," he added.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which is based in Britain and headed by dissident Rami Abdelrahman, said it had received reports of dozens of bodies found in Daraya, but it had not yet ascertained how they were killed.
The army overran Daraya, one of a series of large, mostly run-down Sunni Muslim towns that surround Damascus, on Saturday after three days of heavy bombardment that killed 70 people, according to opposition sources and residents who said most of the dead were civilians.
The attack on Daraya was part of an army campaign to regain control of the outskirts of the capital, a mixture of built up areas and farmland where rebels had regrouped and relaunched guerrilla attacks on Assad's forces.
Assad belongs to Syria's minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam that has dominated power in Syria for the last five decades. Members of the country's Sunni majority are at the forefront of the uprising.
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Leave a Comment:
And this is the United States problem... how? Not our fight.. Let them sort it out.
@!$%# you coward they executed children
@!$%# you coward they executed children
Carbon... According to who? A bunch of "activists, Rebels home grown militia?" More like Terrorists of the State. Read... Absorb... Think... It is unquestioned that these people are not just a bunch of citizens rising up to change a govenment. They are a well thought out and sponsored bunch of terrorists whos goal is to remove a govenment and replace it with a Sunni run Muslim extreme bunch of freaks...
We have Fuc--- up enough by murdering he army of Libya to allow the Muslim Brotherhood into control, along with sponsering the overthrow of all the other "Arib Spring" BS, contrived overthrow of legitimate governments. THis would be a great time to STOP. We have nothing but enemies throughout the Middle East. Now, we are arming and supporting peopel who are by their own admission made up of extreme muslim groups from throughout the region, including the groups who your neighbor, family member or at the least patriot citixzen is fighting and being killed as part of the US Military.
Get us completely out of this shi- hole called the middle east... bring our troops homealong with every peice of weaponry and equipment and stop spending our money on this unwinnable area. Lets take care of the USA and screw these bizzare Arab freaks.
How can Russia support this bastard in his massacre of innocents? They are co-conspirators and as culpable as Assad.
Activists allege. Sounds like bullsh*t and propaganda to me in an attempt to get the world to take the side of the rebels who are just as bad if not worse. We will take a pass...thanks anyway.
-msgfromme
The U.N. observers that were in Syria have confirmed reports of the Syrian Army executing elderly, women, and children. Not in this specific incident, but in previous mass slaughters during this ordeal. This isn't the first nor will it be the last time. Also do you know the difference between a Sunni or Shiite? I agree with you that we are suffering greatly because of the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq and overthrow that legitimate government. Should have removed Saddam during the first war instead of start another one to do it. I do wonder how you would classify a government that uses the full force of its military against its own civilians as being legitimate.
Prisons are full.... 9/11 attacks were done by mostly Saudis, you know, friends of the Bush oil folks. Get some facts.
Carbon...so what....in their world children grow up to take revenge, its a middle eastern thing, don't fret about it...its been going since the first stone was thrown....
The Syrian Rebels (Activist) fight the Syrian Army using civilians as shields. When the Syrian Army wins a battle, the Rebels call it a massacre. When the Rebels win a battle, it is called a victory. The Rebels fight from neighborhoods and from areas where non-combatants (women & children) live. The press believes "everything" the rebels report and brand the Syrian Army as criminals and guilty of Crimes Against Humanity but they do not report the massacres caused by the Rebels. In the Syrian part of the world, that is how they fight their battles, they kill women and children and complain when the West doesn't come to their aid. When the West does help the Rebels, the Rebels turn those weapons on the Western Nations that helped them win the battle and war. The Rebels should live or die on their own merits.
zim, my understanding is that the rebels are not as pure as the driven snow....they have plenty of executions to their credit as well.
Nope this is not one bit America's problem and no amount of Computer Generated Macho Sock Puppet Nonsense is going to get US into yet another Not War For Al-Qaeda.
Besides this sounds a lot more like that Secret Support & Leadership For Al-Qaeda that the British SAS and Barry Bush-Wacker have been provided to Al-Qaeda recently!
Remember Assad probably doesn't want Any Massacre's that might bring in the West but Al-Qaeda, The Bloody British and Back Door Barry would love 3 or 4 more times that many People Massacred as an excuse to Slip it to US once again!
Think about it folks who benefits from such War Crimes Propaganda Syria or Al-Qaeda? Sounds like just another Special Air Service to me!
Forget about the Election....If Bumbling Barry gets US into ONE MORE UN Not War For Wall Streets Corporate Fun & Profit...IMPEACH THE POMPOUS A$$!
Otherwise please Remember DO NOT Reward Failure & Treason....Refuse To Re-Elect ANY Incumbents be they Democrat Or Republican and NONE of these Political Minions of Wall Street deserve Our Trust any longer!
they desrved big time, they are terrors and coming from all over the arab terror countries to destroy a beautiful country like syria, rebles are terrors, one some one come to your country to destoyed what you will do , you will kill them, the media is full of it, they want to hand syria to muslim brotherhood, jesus please get rid of these evils
Hello folks, Jim (first comment) is absolutely right! Not our fight and isn't it ironic that all the millions we have killed and trillions we have spent in "The War On Terror" against Al Qaeda who are the rebels we are arming and funding in Syria. Our country is being run by a bunch of psychopaths.
It would be nice to have a article that allows both sides to comment. Let me think do i believe rebels who are Al Quieda and Muslim Brotherhood members. Hmm no. Either they killed them or they were shot for treason which is allowed in most countries. IE text on phone giving cordinates to rebels. That is treason.
All these comments are right on about us NOT getting involved and NOT supporting Muslim Brotherhood rebels. This is NOT our fight!!
I wonder what Sasha and Malia think of their father allowing children to be murdered. Why is it OK for him to stick his nose in Egypt and Libya business but not Syria or Iran?
the CIA AKA al qaeda go in and starts these wars with the promise of USA help but russia and china has blocked this from happening, thank god, and as for 911 you guys watch too much of the ZIONIST controlled MEDIA all LIES, LIES, and more LIES. the ISRAEL TERRORIST did 911 just so USA get involed in the IRAQ just like they want too do with IRAN, find weapons of mass destruction, RON PAUL addressed congress a few weeks ago saying IRAN is not breaking any LAWS, all lies by israel terrorist. and israel did the same thing to SYRIA.
It's not and we should stay out of it.
Prisons... no conspiracy theory here. The ones that flew the planes into the towers on 9/11 were from Saudi Arabia. 15 out of 19 were from Saudi Arabia not Syria. Get some facts before you spout off.
laboror,
You're so stupid, you can't even spell laborer right.
This is pure propaganda and is pretty easy to see through. The agenda here is to condemn Assad as some kind of mass murderer while the so called "rebels" are as pure as the driven snow. The fact is that this is a civil war by any account and people suffer and die in wars. It's not our war but Obama it seems is chomping at the bit wanting to get involved, and we may, in some capacity, already be involved.
Fedupwithfed 1.18
Or Chicago?
That is what we said in WW2 when Hitler was rounding up all the Jews. He wasn't executing them at that point though.
Its a civil war and both sides have guns send your kid to fight their war then. Hilter disarmed the public prior to rounding up people.
not a civil war, its an insurrection. pop open a dictionary and actually learn for yourself what a civil war is and not let the media tell you what it is not.
hitler invaded other countries. we have no authority to tell another sovereign nation what they can and cant do within their own borders. would you allow another nation to tell us what to do within our borders? now if syria attacked other nations then they have a problem but not a moment before.
Splitting hairs. There really isnt a whole lot of difference between the words. Im not sure what the Hitler invaded other countries has to do with my prior comment. The comment about Hitler disarming the public, especially the jews, left them defenseless. This is not the case currently in Syria. The free syrian army has weapons and can defend themselves. If you want to save the world by all means you and the kids put on the body armor grab your M4's and head out to Syria. Me I'll sit back and watch with my beer. Im not a fan of Assad but people of other religions were left alone. Islamists arent going to be that nice. See what happens to folks of other religions once Assad falls like what happened in Eygpt, Iraq, etc. That part of the world the dumb uneducated (except for the Koran) need a dictator to keep a lid on the nutjob Islamists.
That's what happens when rebels hide in residential areas.
Same thing would happen here in US, if people arm themselves against the government!
@Jim, I have not seen one piece of documentation saying Hitler disarmed the population. He used his Brown Shirted Bully Boys to get control on things and there weapons of choice were Blackjacks and Brass-Knucks.
@Swagganaut, you are correct here but realize that all the big news Media are Forgien. There are 7-8 Conglomerates here and not one is American nor in our country. They do know english but somethings don't excactly translate to the wording it shoud. In there Language there is a translation for Civil War but the word Insurrection doesn't exist.
I have to agree with Mr. Binkie, these rebels hide among civilians, most times dressed like civilians, take cover in the residential areas and then start screaming about civilian casualties. It has been said that both sides have taken part in these atrocities of crimes against humanity and there is almost never any proof of which side committed them. I'm sure the "rebels" take kindly to those that do not pick up arms against the Assad regime.
The nations grew turbulent. Critical times hard to deal with, will be here.
Wow,.. the suburbs ain't what they used to be.
When is the U.S. going to get involved?
Hopefully not, we have problems just south of our border that is not being addressed.
Why should the U.S. borrow money from China to get involved in Syria? We have no legitimacy there. Let the middle east settle their own problems.
They are, Killary and McCain are giving tons of money to the rebels to kill all the Christians and put alQaida in power !
There should have been intervention a long time ago. To do nothing when you could do something is to be culpable in the killing.
Wrong. This is none of our business. Why hasn't the arab league stepped in? Notice how Jordan is staying out of this? They are their direct neighbors! I hope Assad wins.
Really? Ok toughguy save the world strap on the armor and grab the M4 and head out there and join the free syrian army. Somehow I dont think you will. Thats for other people to do. You just want to make noise oh someone should do something. The US cant save the world and we shouldnt try. People die thats life. Duty to protect thats BS.
You go and do it is no arguement. Bottom line humanity is going down the toilet with this being allowed to continue.
Ross...I'm sure the rebels would take you in a heartbeat, especially if you showed up with a few guns....head on over and keep us updated....talk is cheap.
Nonsense Ross We Have No Business Supporting Al-Qaeda ANYWHERE!
Instead We Should Be Exterminating Al-Qaeda and its Supporters EVERY WHERE!
Unfortunately the Wall Street UN Globalists Who Have Seized Control Over Our Government Have Seen A Profit Is Once Again To Be Had So.....Out Come The Pro Al-Qaeda One Line Sock Puppets Crying......Think About The Children!
All The While They Are Dropping OUR Million Dollar Bombs & Missiles On Somebody Else's Children!
America.....Just say NO to Even More Not Wars For Wall Streets Corporate Profits & Military Generals Fun!
Though it maybe too late for IMPEACHMENT We Can Still Refuse To Re-Elect This Not War KILLER DRONE Obomination !
Intervention? That is possibly the problem here, instead of getting this (civil wars) done centuries ago, they have had intervention as far back as The Roman Empire. My thoughts are to let them go and get done with it. The draw back here is it could Decades.
"Propaganda, Propaganda, Propaganda, Propaganda"
Learn a new tune, NBC.
News organizations were already caught making up fake Syrian news. Just look up "staged cnn interviews faked by activist danny" in Youtube, and that's one of dozens of powerful examples. This article here is about as real and verified as Osama Bin Laden's death - lol.
Muslims killing Muslims...if only all Muslim countries would do the same.
I am glad that Assad is killing these islamic extremists and I hope he ends up winning this civil war. The Russians are correct in allowing SYRIA to determine SYRIA's fate.
Another faked news story ! It is always the same news but NEVER any news of the rebels beheading Christians and looting churches etc. cnn even mutes footage of the rebels shouting Allah Akbar as they do not want the people to know they are alQaida ! So far Assad is about the only world leader fighting back against Saudi payed terrorism !
Actually the Al Qaeda has offered there services to the Rebels. But were turned down when Al Qaeda told them it was a 4LIFE deal. One of the rebels joined Al Qaeda and decided he didn't like it and wanted to leave and they killed him. Looks like Al Qaeda is learning from the US very well.
Way to go, Assad! Screw the rebels!
I look at it this way. If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it does it make sound? If a muslum kills a muslum and the U.S. doesn't care, does it really happen? We should let these people go and whoever wins gets the power. Russia should not support nor should they not support Assad. The world should stay out of this and let the people of Syria figure this out for themsevles.
not one muslim will ever see heaven ......
i cant believe the people who want to get involved in this cesspool. lets work on chicago instead Go Obozo...............
Absolutely wrong if women and children were killed.
However, if Al Qaeda are the ones getting whacked, so be it. They kill our troops in Afghanistan, so why on earth should we get involved there?
Your conception of combat is, only the other side dies? I think you will find that is the other guys concept to.
All the centuries Arabs have been around and the only thing they are famous for is killing each other. You'd think by now they would find something better to do.
Boom, Exactly how many women and children did we kill with all the bombs we dropped in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Iraq, and every once in a while a drone kills at least one bystander. We are not getting condemned for War Crimes so why Assad. I agree with you if women and children are being slaughtered but I also see that they support the rebels so in a civil war their lives are worth nothing to Assad. He is trying to bring peace and stability back to the country by any means nesecessary and since only Sunnis are being slaughtered I believe that Assad is in the right considering only Sunnis support this so called rebel uprising. It is how Muslims fight their wars they kill innocents in order to make thier enemies suffer but you don't think the rebels do the same that they probably find and kill the families of prominent officers in the army to make them suffer for their alliance with Assad? This is War get over it War is not meant to be cute, or easy, or even controlled. I think the U.S. is in the wrong for trying these kind of ethics in our wars because all it means is that when we meet an enemy that won't back down until they are completely destroyed we won't have to guts to slaughter them like the rats they are. Also I don't have any problem with Russia helping Assad because they have a military alliance. When we fought our revolution we didn't just fight british, there were scottish and irish and even swedens and some accounts even have japanese on our shores fighting with them because they gave them mercenaries per an alliance or a sworn loyalty to the crown in its time of need. If the rebels want to take down the government then they must learn that you don't just fight a governments forces which have been around since decades, you also fight their allies and what they bring to the table. War is in Syria so no rules apply until the fight is won.
Assad bring peace and stability? I think trying to cement himself in as dictator. Than it's going to turn into an on again, off again situation like with Iran and Iraq in the not so distant past. We did a lot of flip-flopping back and forth than.
What don't people get about this? The Shia kill the Sunni, the Alawite kill the Sunni as in Syria, all want to kill the Christians except the Alawite that have been the most accepting of other religions one of the reasons they are so despised by other factions of Islam. This is a fight for survival for the better educated and civilized Alawite. If the Sunni take over and they probably will then Syria will revert to just another useless Islamic country full of fundamentalist low life Islamic extremists. Oh, BTW the Sunni's will exterminate the Alawite, do believe that is called genocide.
Just like in Bosnia. The possibility for the same looks likely. As to why people don't get it, it is because it is easier to clump them all to gather than take time to think it through and look at who is whom.
Everyone,
I just sent an email to all Members of the Parliament of Canada attaching my recent letter to Assad (Aug. 20) as well as my YouTube video.
If you can, please rally your own government to do whatever they can to pressure Assad to leave.. NOW!!
We have to stop the madness.
Thanks,
Jack H.
www DOT youtube DOT com/watch?v=st_wzmFA3tU
Now just what interest do you think Canada has in this? You haven't got any troops there and your country hasn't any vested interest there. The only thing you have is a Canadian Represntative in the UN. In fact Canada hasn't volunteered any troops with any combat knowledge for any cause anywhere since WWII. Canada probably wouldn't have than except for the fact you have a French connection.
6dogs,
You're full of crap.
Canada has been in many conflicts since WWII. From personal experience Operation Deliberate Force (Bosnia/Herzegovina) and Operation Allied Force (Kosevo).
We should not be the World Police, let these countries solve their own problems, they have been killing each other since time began and never will stop. We need to get the hell out of the middle east and take care of the problems in this country. Stop sending our young men and women to fight and die in places that don't give a crap about us.
I found a Documentary on Netflix called "A World Without US(meaning the US). If you get a chance to view it, it can answer an a lot of question that people ask or express their displeasure about It even answers the Question about Iraqs Oil. You are aware that loosing countries pay War Debt to Conquering Countries? The question I have is....If we are collecting money off the sales of Iraqs Oil, as was stated by Bush, in his war Repremend Speech, as way to get our expenses back, is "Where is the money going"? As for being the world Police, even that gets addressed here. way to involved to comment about. But, I would say this situation was unintentionally created by us,the US.
You can run these stories from now until doomsday, there is nothing the U.S. can nor will do. The U.N. will do nothing because Russia and China benefit financially, so the Syrians are on their own. Sorry to be cold, but we are no longer the world's police force (hell we're not even a superpower anymore).
It would be nice to have a article that allows both sides to comment. Let me think do i believe rebels who are Al Quieda and Muslim Brotherhood members. Hmm no. Either they killed them or they were shot for treason which is allowed in most countries. IE text on phone giving cordinates to rebels. That is treason. Rebels are terrorist trying to invade Syria with a group of Syrians that does not have full support of the people. Assad troops will not just kill for the heck of it, that is a stupid move. I have also seen many video shot by Rebels where they are wearing Syrian Uniform killing under the name of Assad then celebrating with the Rebel flag. Funny isn't it. Also Aleppo has been taken over mostly by the Syrian Army, it showed how crowds came out to the street thanking the Army for taking the neighborhood over.
мне просто интересно - сколько среди этих убитых, при операциях зачистки, реально граждан Сирии? а сколько проплаченных западом и штатами наемников и аль-каиды ?
Я думал все население Сирии уже давно бежало... граждан Сирии быть среди убитых быть не должно.
Надеюсь Правительство Сирии наведет в своей Стране порядок и избавит ее от наемников и головорезов проплаченных западом\сша и арабией\катаром с их так называемой "не летальной поддержкой"
И наконец начнется нормальный мирный политический процесс и востановление страны.
This comment was directed to our Russian friends...
Assad is a sick bastard. His days are near to an end.
Where's the brave muslim brotherhood that complain about American soldiers ?