Did Syria use Iranian snipers to attack demonstrators?
Image via WikipediaSyria has opened fire on protesters as unrest spreads to Damascus and Aleppo. “Hundreds took to the streets in the cities of Homs, Hama, Tel and Latakia and in towns surrounding Deraa, with smaller protests in the major cities of Damascus and Aleppo, which are more firmly under the watch of security forces. Troops reportedly opened fire in some cases.”There is more.
In an ominous development, the BBC says Farsi-speaking armed units are being used to break up the protests by sniping at the demonstrators from rooftops.
... The events in Damascus are being keenly followed in Beirut, where a collapse in Syrian power would immediately change the correlation of forces. “Hezbollah will be adversely affected should the uprising in Syria expand,” Solh told AFP. “An escalation, on the other hand, will give hope to those opposed to Syrian hegemony in Lebanon.”
Zyad Maged, political science professor at the American University of Paris, said should the revolt in the southern town of Daraa spread throughout Syria, that would weaken the regime and destabilise its allies in Lebanon.Meanwhile, the United States has unsuccessfully tried to shift the burden of the Libya operation to Europe. The diplomats have decided to transfer command to NATO but leave the US military bearing the burden. It is the same dog with a different collar. The Libyan air force has disappeared and its navy has refused to leave port, but the main challenge remains protecting rebels on the ground. And that, alas, remains an American task.
“Hezbollah is hoping the domestic unrest in Syria ends quickly even if it’s through repression,” Maged said. “The Syrian regime offers a guarantee for them, geographically at least.”
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The use of Iranian snipers suggest how weak the Syrian forces are in dealing with the uprising. It is possible the army and police have refused to kill their own people. That has never been a problem for the Iranian thugs. I think the use of the snipers is going to backfire on the Syrians. The crowds were able to capture some of the killers. It will be interesting to see what happens to them.
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