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

21 August In a media interview, Assad claimed he wanted to pursue reforms and pursue "terrorists". Assad warned against foreign
intervention. Two people died in Hama when Shabbiha randomly opened fire on civilians in the street. The Syrian opposition gathered
in Syria for talks on creating a rival government. [206]
22 August As protests continued, the UN said the protester death toll had reached 2,200. The United Nations Human Rights Council
voted to launch an investigation into crimes against humanity committed by the Syrian government, despite objections by Russia and
the People's Republic of China. [207] A UN team visited Homs to assess the humanitarian situation there and investigate claims of
human rights abuses by Syrian authorities. Shortly after its departure, security forces reportedly opened fire on demonstrators in the
city, leaving at least four dead, Human Rights Watch said. [208]
23 August Main article: National Council of Syria In Istanbul, Turkey, the National Council of Syria was announced to "represent the
concerns and demands of the Syrian people". [209] In Geneva, Switzerland, the United Nations Human Rights Council voted to
condemn the Syrian government over its response to the uprising. [210] At least 12 were killed in Idlib, Hama, and Homs governorates,
the Arab Organization for Human Rights claimed. [211]
24 August Despite the National Council's stated purpose in uniting all Syrian opposition groups, a Syrian Turkmen opposition activist
complained that his community was marginalised and said he and other Syrian Turks were not invited to the council's formation, and
then were accorded only observer status upon attending. [212] A European Union official said the EU would likely place an embargo on
Syrian oil within ten days. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that a woman was tortured to death in western Syria,
while Al Jazeera reported that three civilians died amid raids in Homs, one protester was killed by snipers overnight in Nessieb, and
five people were killed in an agricultural area outside Hama. [213] The Arab Organization for Human Rights put the death toll for the
day at 13, reporting several shootings of protesters in Deir ez-Zor and suburbs of Damascus as well, [211] while the LCC said at least 17
were killed across Syria. [214] The Russian Foreign Ministry, supported by the government of the People's Republic of China, released a
statement urging the international community not to interfere with Syria's "internal affairs". [215]
25 August Prominent political cartoonist Ali Ferzat was reportedly kidnapped and beaten by pro-regime assailants before being
released near Damascus International Airport. [211] The identity of his attackers was unclear, with some attributing the beating to Syrian
security forces. Some reports said both his hands were broken as a "warning" to dissuade him from drawing. [216][217] Residents near
Latakia and in Deir ez-Zor said they heard gunfire near their homes, the head of the Arab Organization for Human Rights claimed. [211]
The LCC said tanks again shelled Deir ez-Zor throughout the day, and at least 118 tanks were reported to be in Shuhail to the city's
immediate southeast. The state-controlled Syrian Arab News Agency reported eight soldiers, including an army officer, were
ambushed and killed in two separate attacks by "armed terrorist groups" in Homs Governorate the previous afternoon. The report said
at least seven soldiers were wounded in one of the attacks when "terrorists" shot at a military bus in Talbisah. Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad offered a measured criticism of the Syrian government for the first time, calling for a national dialogue in a
televised interview and saying, "When there is a problem between the people and their leaders, they must sit down together to reach a
solution, away from violence." [214] The Syrian opposition prepared to launch new Friday mass protests, this time dubbed under the
name '"Friday of Patience and Steadfastness'". [218]
26 August – "Friday of Patience and Steadfastness" On the last Friday of Ramadan, thousands protested in several Syrian cities,
including Damascus, Deir ez-Zor, Deraa, Douma, Hama, Homs, and towns in Idlib Governorate, and security forces responded to
many anti-government rallies with live fire and tear gas. 8 protesters were killed overnight when security forces attacked street
demonstrations, activists said. [219] The LCC said six people were injured in Qusayr after security forces shot at peaceful
demonstrators. [220] At least 3 protesters were reported slain in Deir ez-Zor during the day. Another protester was killed in Nawa,
witnesses claimed, and another in Mleeha, one in Qaboun, one in Bosra, and one in Ma`arrat an-Nu`man. Many protesters carried
placards congratulating the Libyan people on their progress in overthrowing Muammar Gaddafi. [221] Tanks backed up security troops
in many places, said residents of protest hotspots. [222]
27 August Before dawn, protests erupted in Damascus, both in the suburbs and in the city centre. Multiple witnesses reported that a
mosque was stormed in Kafarsouseh, a Damascus suburb, and thousands protested there against the regime, though a crowd of regime
supporters turned out to chant slogans in support of Assad. Several protesters, as well as the mosque's 80-year-old imam, were
reportedly injured. Security forces used live fire and tear gas against demonstrators in a square adjacent to the mosque, wounding at
least five. Hundreds more protested in Moadamiya, another suburb, and in the Damascene neighbourhood of Tijana. A planned
protest in Abaseen Square was largely thwarted, though about 60 protesters managed to march into the square before being dispersed.
More protesters from Douma marched toward central Damascus, though protesters in the suburb of Saqba met live fire from security
forces, leaving at least one dead, activists claimed. In Tehran's most direct warning to Syrian authorities yet, Iranian Foreign Minister
Ali Akbar Salehi said protesters had "legitimate demands" and added, "The government should answer to the demands of its people,
be it Syria, Yemen, or other countries." The Arab League also called on the Syrian government to end its crackdown. [223] Two
protesters were killed in Latakia and Qusayr, activists said. [224]
28 August London-based daily As-Sharq al-Awsat reported that Mohammad Rahhal, the leader of the LCC's Revolutionary Council,
said the council had concluded that "what we are being subjected to today is a global conspiracy that can only be faced by an armed
uprising". He said the council was now working to distribute weapons to protesters in order to combat the regime's security
crackdown. He criticised the international response to the Syrian uprising, saying, "Confronting this monster [the Syrian regime] now
requires arms, especially after it has become clear to everyone that the world only supports the Syrian uprising through speeches." He
predicted the protest movement "will turn violent very soon". [225] The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported five protesters
were killed, including two who succumbed to mortal injuries from the previous day, and at least nine more were wounded. Residents
of Qadam claimed a firefight between soldiers and army defectors who joined protesters took place in the Damascus suburb, though it
was unclear if anyone was hurt or killed in the shooting. [226] The Movement of Free Officers claimed "large defections" from Syrian
security forces to the side of the protesters in Harasta, another Damascus suburb, and said a colonel in the Syrian Air Force who was
involved in the secret police had been shot in the head in Saqba. The statement claimed shabiha and loyalist troops were pursuing the
defectors into central Damascus. [227] On the diplomatic front, the Arab League said it would send Secretary-General Naril Elaraby on
a mission to Damascus in an "urgent" effort to end the crisis, while the Syrian government rejected the Arab League's statement. [226]
29 August One person was reported killed in a dawn raid on Qara, a suburb of the capital, while five were said to have been killed
and at least 60 injured in Sarmin, including a child, when security forces opened fire while conducting house-to-house searches. Five
were wounded in Hit, Syria, near the Lebanese border, witnesses said. The crackdown in Hit reportedly prompted at least several