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    June 29, 2011

Government Tanks Enter Northern Syrian Province

   VOA News
   Turkish soldiers survey the border between Syria and Turkey from a
   military post near the Turkish village of Guvecci in Hatay province,
   June 28, 2011
   Photo: AP
   Turkish soldiers survey the border between Syria and Turkey from a
   military post near the Turkish village of Guvecci in Hatay province,
   June 28, 2011

   Syrian activists say government tanks have moved into the northern
   province of Idlib, the latest move in an on-going, violent crackdown
   against protesters calling for an end to the Syrian president's 11-year
   rule.
   Activists say several tanks rolled into the village of Rama overnight,
   sending more people fleeing to Syria's border with Turkey, where
   thousands have sought refuge from the violence.
   On Tuesday, Russian envoy Mikhail Margelov said Moscow wants Syria to
   implement "real" reforms and "put an end to violence" that has shaken
   the country since the start of a pro-democracy uprising in March.
   A group of exiled Syrian opposition activists in the Russian capital
   urged the envoy to pressure Syrian President Bashar al-Assad into
   stopping a violent crackdown, which is now in its third month.
   Margelov said Russia is "seriously concerned" about the situation in
   Syria and does not want it to descend into a Libya-style civil war.
   Russia has been a major supplier of weapons to Syria since the Soviet
   era.
   Russia has rejected Western-led efforts to pass a United Nations
   Security Council resolution condemning Syria over the crackdown.
   Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the Syrian
   opposition should focus on entering talks with the Assad government on
   proposed reforms.

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

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