Syrian Civil War 2011-2012 - Societa italiana di storia militare

1 April – "Friday of Martyrs" After online calls for a "Friday of Martyrs" (Arabic: جمعة الشھداء ), thousands of protesters emerged
from Friday's prayers and took to the streets in multiple cities around Syria. Security forces opened fire on about 1,000 protesters in
the suburb of Damascus, Douma, killing eight. In Damascus, hundreds gathered in Al Rifai mosque to protest after Friday prayers;
however, government forces reportedly sealed the mosque and attacked those who tried to leave. Further south, in a small city outside
Daraa, a demonstrator was killed during a protest there. [144][145]
2 April Over 2,000 people protested in support of Assad in the village of Buq'ata in the Golan Heights, [146] while Syrian security
forces arrested more than 20 people in Daraa and Homs, according to a human rights group. [147] Prime Minister of Turkey Recep
Erdogan said he will put pressure on Assad to create reforms. [148]
3 April Syrian authorities released 50-year-old Reuters photographer Khaled al-Hariri after six days in detention. [149] Assad appointed
Adel Safar as the new Syrian prime minister and charged him with the task of forming a new government. [150]
4 April Assad appointed Mohammad Khaled al-Hannus as the new governor of Daraa. [151] Meanwhile, thousands of Syrians marched
through the shuttered streets of Douma, just outside Damascus, chanting antigovernment slogans as they buried at least eight victims
of the crackdown on protests held 1 April. [116] Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the state news agency, reported that 8 prisoners
were killed in a fire that was set by one of the prisoners in Latakia prison. Two police men were injured by the fire. [152]
5 April – "Martyrs' Week" AFP reported the start of "Martyrs Week" (Arabic: أسبوع الشھداء ), a series of rallies organized by the
Syrian Revolution 2011 Facebook group in honor of those killed in recent security crackdowns on pro-reform demonstrations. [153]
According to state television, two policemen in rural Damascus were shot to death by unidentified perpetrators. [154] 15 people died in
[citation needed]
protests in Kafr Batna in Syria.
6 April Assad's government offered concessions to Sunnis and Kurds and that teachers would once again be allowed to wear the
niqab. [116] The government had also closed the country's only casino. [155] Tens of thousands of Kurds residing in Syria will soon be
granted Syrian citizenship. [156] The editor of Syrian government daily Teshreen said she is organizing talks with key opposition figures
so that they can air their demands for political reforms. [157] A politician close to the regime said that the Syrian parliament is preparing
to adopt major reforms in May, including an end to emergency rule. [158]
7 April Minor protests took place across Syria, but the majority of protesters prepared for large demonstrations planned for
Friday. [159]
8 April – "Friday of Resistance"
Unknown Gunmen Filmed at Syria Demo (YouTube: Associated Press.) 8 April 2011. Retrieved 9 April
2011.
On the third Friday called "Friday of Resistance" (Arabic: جمعة الصمود ), thousands of protesters took to streets in Daraa, Latakia,
Tartus, Edlib, Baniyas, Qamishli, Homs and the Damascus suburb of Harasta, in the largest protest yet. [160][161] 27 anti-government
protesters were killed in Daraa and many other were wounded when security forces opened fire with rubber bullets and live rounds to
disperse stone-throwing protesters. [161][162] The clashes started when thousands of prayers staged rallies following the Friday prayers.
In a telephone call one of the activists told the news agencies that demonstrators, starting from three mosques, have marched to the
city's main court where they were confronted by security forces dressed in civilian clothing. [163] A witness told Reuters he saw
"snipers on roofs." [164] It was also reported that another resident has seen "pools of blood and three bodies" in the Mahatta area of
Daraa. [164] The protesters have also smashed a stone statue of Basil al-Assad, the brother of the current President of the country, and
set fire to a Ba'ath Party outpost. [163][164][165] The state-run Syrian Television reported that 19 police officers and members of the
security forces have been killed in Daraa. [166] At least three people were killed in Damascus's suburb city of Harasta and two people
were killed and dozens wounded in Homs, Syria's third largest city. [167] A human rights group said 37 people killed in protests across
the country on Friday. [116]
9 April Witnesses in the city of Daraa reported that Syrian security forces fired live ammunition and tear gas at thousands of
protesters who had gathered for a mass funeral near a mosque. [168] In Latakia, witnesses said Syrian security forces used live
ammunition to disperse hundreds of people who gathered to protest. Another witness said water trucks had been brought in and were
hosing down the streets to wash away blood. [169]
10 April The death toll of the previous day's events was up to 26 people in Daraa, [citation needed] 20 in the Homs neighborhood of Teldo
[citation needed]
and one in Baniyas. On 10 April's morning, militiamen alleged to be members of the shabbiha opened fire on
demonstrators in front of the main mosquee of Baniyas, killing at least 4. Uprising also took place in Homs, Douma and Daraa. [170] 9
soldiers of a unit of the Syrian army were killed in an armed ambush on a road near Baniyas, including two officers, while many
others were injured. [171]
11 April Students in the Science faculty of Damascus University, located in the Baramkeh area in Damascus, began a demonstration
in which they chanted for freedom and support of the people in Daraa and Baniyas. However, the Damascus University Dean of the
Faculty of Science, Dr. Mohammad Said Mahasni, denied the reports, and said instead that a number of students gathered in front of
the faculty, rejecting attempts of destabilizing Syrian national security, and chanting national slogans and support for Assad. [172][173] In
Baniyas, funerals for the four protesters who were shot down by the military led to a new demonstration, and security forces attacked
the city until late at night. [174]
12 April The day started with a confirmation that one student was beaten to death by security forces during the demonstration at
Damascus University one day earlier. Witnesses reported that the suburb of Bayda in Baniyas was surrounded by tanks, and ongoing
gunfire by security forces had led to dozens of injuries, [175] while neither ambulance cars nor necessary food-aid that had been sent
from the nearby city Tartus were allowed to enter the village.
13 April Hundreds of women took part in a march demanding the release of 350 men arrested in town of Bayda. Protests also spread
to Aleppo University, as security forces and students clashed on the campus of Aleppo's faculty of literature and three students were
arrested. In Damascus, about 50 students staged a pro-freedom protest at the faculty of law. [176]
14 April Assad announced the release of hundreds of prisoners that were "not involved in criminal acts", and that a new government
had been formed (see Cabinet of Syria). In the coastal city of Baniyas (Banias), the army replaced the secret police. Shortly
afterwards, a sniper killed one soldier and wounded another. Assad also met with a delegation from Deraa in his first direct contact
with representatives close to the protesters. [177][178] 300 people protested in Suwayda. [179]