Dubai Developments in Syria took a dramatic turn yesterday with the army being deployed in the port city of Latakia to protect residents against snipers.
The security of Latakia is crucial to the stability of the country because Sunni and Alawite sects have lived there in peace and harmony for many years. It is also the city that witnessed the 1980 confrontation between the Muslim Brotherhood and the government under the late Hafez Al Assad.
A resident of Latakia, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Gulf News that the situation was very bad.
“About 10 people were killed, four of them from the security forces. People have chosen to remain indoors and youth in three main Sunni districts closed their areas with tyres and garbage bins to stop strangers from entering,” she said.
Those who went to work were asked to return and check tomorrow by telephone if they have to come.
Emergency Law
She said Latakia had turned into a ghost city.
Meanwhile, the hopes of people who have been waiting to hear an announcement that the Emergency Law, in force since March 8, 1963, was to be lifted, were dashed.
However, he was yet to speak to his people at the time of going to press.
In Sanameen, thousands thronged the graveyard to bury those who were killed by security forces on Friday.
The ceremony turned into a show of strength by the protesters who chanted slogans against the government and demanded the end of the regime.
The situation in Daraa, the surrounding cities and villages of the province remained tense.
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