More than 145 civilians murdered with knives in Damascus

Syrian Revolution News Round- up / Day 562-  Activists said that regime forces and pro-regime militias killed more than 327 civilians throughout the country, half of which were murdered with knives in Damascus and its suburbs including 105 in the town of Thiyabiay and 16 in the neighbourhood of Barzeh including women and children.

They also executed four civilians in the neighbourhood of Asaly at the same time eight bodies carrying burn marks were found in the neighbourhood of Hajar Aswad. Meanwhile, six civilians were killed and dozens were injured due to the indiscriminate and fierce shelling in the Damascus suburb of Douma.In a related development, regime forces murdered at least 19 civilians as they stormed the neighbourhood of Joura in the city of Deir Azzour, while at least 14 more died as a result of the indiscriminate shelling that targeted the civil registry building in the center of Deir Azzour city. Regime forces also resumed their indiscriminate and fierce shelling in the neighbourhoods of Jbaila, Baajin, Sheikh Yasin, Hamidiya and Mowathafin in the city of Deir Azzour as well as its provincial town of Boukamal amid fierce fighting with rebel fighters.

At least 15 civilians were murdered while dozens were arrested as regime troops and military tanks stormed the neighbourhood of Mashaa Arbaeen in Hama city where they also looted and burned down dozens of houses. Regime forces also murdered a number of civilians in the Hama suburbs of Souran and Latamna while resumed pounding a number of villages and towns in the Shahshabo district and the eastern suburbs of Hama.

In Homs, regime forces executed a number of civilians in the town of Zaafaraneh, while the fierce shelling and suffocating siege continue to risk the lives of hundreds of trapped civilians as food and medical supplies become scarce. In the meantime, regime forces shelled the neighbourhoods of Jobar and Sultaniya as well as the provincial towns of Rastan, Teir Ma’aleh and Ghanto.

Ansar al-Islam group said in a statement today that rebel fighters have successfully managed to infiltrate the heavily-guarded Syrian military headquarters in central Damascus for the third consecutive time and detonated the building using two vacant parked car bombs and then shooting officers and personnel while trying to escape.

Regime forces also continued their massive military offensive throughout the country, killing dozens of civilians, wounding hundreds others and forcing thousands of them to flee their homes. They fiercely shelled Damascus suburbs of Rankous, Hosh Arab and Harasta while heavily bombarding the neighbourhoods of Haydariya, Slaadin, Shaar, Masaken Hanano, Bustan Qaser and Baidin in the city of Aleppo in addition to its provincial towns of Atareb, Menbej, Deir Hafer, Anjar and Qabtan Jabal. They also shelled the Daraa suburbs of Dael, Naima, Ma’arbeh and the villages of the Lajat district in the province of Daraa. They resumed shelling the Jabal Zawiya district in the province of Idlib as well as the Raqa suburbs of Sharkarak and Tal Abyad. They heavily bombarded the Nahiya district in the province of Latakia and the Qunaitera suburb of Jubata Khashab amid fierce fighting with rebel fighters.

In the meantime, regime forces carried out massive sweeps and arbitrary arrests in the coastal city of Banias arresting more than 68 people including 25 women and three children.