Hama: The Hotbed of Syria's Unrest (Video) (812 hits)
(CNN) -- The Syrian city of Hama has an ancient past as part of the Roman, Greek and Byzantine empires, but recent deadly violence has revived memories of its more recent history as a hotbed of unrest and brutal government crackdown. At least 62 people have died in Hama since Sunday as the government of President Bashar al-Assad attempts to quell the last major bastion of a country-wide rebellion triggered by the Arab Spring that has swept North Africa and the Middle East.
For many, the latest bloodshed reopens wounds of 30 years ago when thousands were killed in a month-long battle as the Syrian army, under orders of then president, Hafez al-Assad, father of the current leader, crushed an uprising by Islamists. Though separated by three decades, the current and previous crackdowns cement Hama's reputation as a city of rebelliousness and anti-government sentiment, says Robert Fisk, the only journalist to witness fighting there in 1982. [...] "Hama is the latest city to fall victim to President Bashar al-Assad's security forces despite his promises that his government would tolerate peaceful protests," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.
The death toll in Syria since its uprising began in mid-March has reached 1,992, according to Rami Abdul-Rahman, head of the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. He said the dead include 1,618 civilians and 374 Syrian security forces. Syrian state-run media reported Tuesday that "armed groups" were behind an assault in Hama on Monday. On Tuesday graphic video was posted on Youtube which shows dead bodies being dumped into a river in Hama. The video claims the bodies are anti-government protesters killed by pro-Assad forces, but an anti-government activist confirmed the state TV account to CNN correspondent Arwa Damon, saying that the bodies are those of Syrian secret police killed by fighters from Iraq who have joined the anti-government fight.
Amnesty International is calling on the Security Council to "urgently respond to the ongoing crackdown in Syria by referring the situation to the International Criminal Court."
