DAMASCUS: Syrian troops and security forces on Monday launched an assault on the central cities of Hama and Homs, where they shot dead at least two people, activists said.
"More than 30 military vehicles and security forces raided Hama this morning and heavy gunfire was heard in the city," Omar Idlibi, spokesman of the Local Coordination Committees, told AFP in Nicosia by telephone.
A similar operation was carried out in central Homs, where the security forces shot dead at least two people, he added.
Troops backed by tanks had stormed Hama on July 31, on the eve of the start of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, to fight "armed groups".
At least 100 people were killed, and the troops withdrew 10 days later.
The protest hub of Homs also witnessed violence Sunday as 15 people were wounded when troops and security forces opened fire in the central city as part of an operation launched Saturday night, activists said.
Elsewhere, at least 24 people were killed in violence across the country on Sunday as the visiting head of the Red Cross, Jakob Kellenberger, sought access to those detained in more than five months of anti-regime protests.
Kellenberger, who arrived on Saturday on a trip including talks with President Bashar Al-Assad and other senior officials, is due to leave the country on Monday afternoon.
He is to be followed soon by Arab League secretary general Nabil Al-Arabi, who said Sunday that Damascus had now agreed to a visit which he had announced a week ago after the 22-member bloc had met to discuss the Syrian crisis.
"I will express Arab concerns and I will listen," he said.
Syria said an August 27 statement passed by Arab League foreign ministers on the country’s deadly unrest contained "unacceptable and biased language," leaving Arabi to await a green light to visit.
Damascus said it would act as if the statement had never been published.
The Arab foreign ministers called for an "end to the spilling of blood and (for Syria) to follow the way of reason before it is too late."
They also called for respecting "the right of the Syrian people to live in security and of their legitimate aspirations for political and social reform.
More than 2,200 people have been killed in Syria since almost daily protests began on March 15, according to the United Nations, while human rights groups say more than 10,000 people are behind bars.
Qatar’s emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani said Monday that Syrians are determined to keep protesting against Assad’s regime despite the deadly crackdown.
"The killing is nearly daily. But it’s clear that the Syrian people will not turn back on their demands," Sheikh Hamad told pan-Arab news channel Al-Jazeera.
"The question now is how to get out of this domestic standoff in Syria," he said.
In August, Sheikh Hamad criticized Syria’s use of force against protesters demanding democratic change, describing the approach as fruitless and urging serious reforms.
Qatar had long enjoyed cordial relations with Damascus, but Doha-based Al-Jazeera television has come under strong criticism by the Syrian authorities for its coverage of the popular uprising.
Tehran reiterated its hope Monday that the crisis in Syria, its main ally in the region, could be resolved "through dialogue and not violence."
Iran "is certain that the Syrian people and the government have the capacity to gain national development through dialogue and refraining from any violence," Hassan Ghashghavi, deputy foreign minister in charge of consular affairs, was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency.
Iran is concerned about the possible collapse of its principal ally in the Middle East and has never condemned the violence of the regime in Damascus in suppressing mass protests.
It accuses its traditional foes Israel and the United States of stirring up trouble in Syria. –AFP
