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Pro-Government Gunmen Fire on Syrian Villages

   VOA News  April 12, 2011
   A tank is seen in the Syrian port city of Banias, April 10, 2011, after
   security forces sealed off the coastal city overnight

Photo: Reuters

   A tank is seen in the Syrian port city of Banias, April 10, 2011, after
   security forces sealed off the coastal city overnight

   Pro-government gunmen in Syria are firing shots in at least one village
   near the coastal city of Banias, the site of recent deadly
   anti-government protests.
   Witnesses say the gunmen launched an attack in the northwestern village
   of Baida, on Tuesday. The Associated Press quotes an opposition leader
   who says pro-government forces have also entered the nearby village of
   Beit Jnad.
   On Sunday, security forces and pro-government gunmen killed four
   protesters and wounded dozens in Banias, after the army sealed off
   large sections of the city.
   Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch says Syrian security forces prevented
   wounded protesters from receiving medical treatment following
   anti-government demonstrations last week.
   The U.S.-based rights group said Tuesday that Syrian authorities did
   not allow ambulances to pick up protesters wounded in the towns of
   Daraa and Harasta.
   At least 26 protesters were killed in Daraa when plain clothes security
   forces opened fire on demonstrators in and around the city on Friday.
   Syrian authorities blamed armed groups for the violence.
   Anti-government protests erupted in Syria more than three weeks ago and
   have been spreading.
   Demonstrators are calling for sweeping political reforms, particularly
   an end to the country's decades-old emergency law that gives the
   government a free hand to stamp out public protests, ban opposition and
   justify arbitrary arrests.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.
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References

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