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    November 03, 2011

3 Killed in Syria Despite Peace Accord

   VOA News
   Anti-government protesters carry the coffins of Sunni Muslim villagers
   killed on Wednesday, in Hula near Homs, November 2, 2011.
   Photo: Reuters
   Anti-government protesters carry the coffins of Sunni Muslim villagers
   killed on Wednesday, in Hula near Homs, November 2, 2011.

   Activists say Syrian security forces killed three people Thursday, a
   day after the government agreed to a plan that calls for an end to
   violence against opposition demonstrators.
   According to activists, the deaths took place in the flashpoint Homs
   region where there are also reports of heavy artillery fire. The
   accounts could not be independently verified.
   Also, the German news agency DPA says anti-government protesters
   launched new rallies at dawn in Homs and several other regions on
   Thursday.
   Wednesday, Syria accepted an Arab League plan that calls for the
   immediate withdrawal of security forces from the streets and an end to
   violence against protesters. The measure also calls for Syria to
   release of all detainees jailed since protests began - a figure
   estimated to be in the tens of thousands.
   The Arab League says once Damascus takes these first steps, talks with
   the Syrian opposition can begin within two weeks.
   Activists reported 31 deaths in Syria on Wednesday, including 11
   factory workers who were killed by gunmen in Homs. They also said
   security forces killed five civilians in that region.
   In Hama province, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
   said Syrian army deserters killed 15 security force members during bomb
   attacks on convoys.
   The United Nations says the number of people killed during the
   eight-month-old uprising against President Bashar al-Assad has topped
   3,000.
   The Syrian government has blamed much of the deadly violence on gunmen
   and "terrorists."

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References

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