No Sign Yet of Syria Ending Crackdown After Peace Deal - East Idaho News
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No Sign Yet of Syria Ending Crackdown After Peace Deal

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123906093?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1333615895171JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — President Bashar al-Assad is again proving to the world that he can’t abide by a peace deal.

Earlier in the week, United Nations special emissary Kofi Annan said that Damascus would go along with his six-point plan to end the year-long crackdown that has cost more than 9,000 lives.

The proposal called for Syria to stop firing on anti-government forces and remove its troops and heavy artillery from population centers by April 10.

Despite claims from various Syrian officials that this was happening, there have been various reports of increased aggressions with over 120 people killed during the last 48 hours.  The fighting has been reported as being especially fierce in the city of Homs, the flashpoint for the rebellion against al-Assad.

Most observers believe Syrian forces are trying to grab as much territory as they can before next Tuesday’s deadline.

The “Friends of Syria” coalition is working separately from the Annan plan to provide either non-lethal support to rebels while some members of the Arab League have talked about paying salaries to opposition forces to keep pressure on al-Assad.

In Washington, White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters at Wednesday’s daily briefing that despite the peace plan Damascus agreed to, “We’ve seen reports of terrible, terrible violence continuing violence in Syria.”

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

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