Tanks fail to quell rebels in Damascus

A force of 50 tanks and armoured vehicles pushed rebels out of the eastern suburbs of Damascus but fighting was reported elsewhere today in the Syrian capital, the seat of president Bashar al-Assad's power.

An activist with the Free Syrian Army said: "Street fighting has been raging since dawn. The sound of gunfire is everywhere."

Damascus had been relatively peaceful during the 10-month uprising which has seen bloodshed in other cities. But 60 people died yesterday as troops loyal to the president shelled dissidents, many of them defecting soldiers.

The presence of rebels so close to the centre of the capital is surprising in tightly controlled Syria and suggests the Assad regime may either be losing control or setting a trap for pro-democracy fighters before going on the offensive.

One resident of the Ein Tarma neighbourhood said he fled with his family when the tanks rolled in: "The shelling and bullets have not stopped since yesterday. It's terrifying, there's no electricity or water, it's a real war. "

Rami Abdul-Rahman, director of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said: "There are heavy clashes going on in all of the Damascus suburbs. Troops were able to enter some areas but are still facing stiff resistance in others."

One US-based blogger wrote: "The battles in and around Damascus may not yet lead to the unravelling of the regime but the illusion of normality that the Assads have sought hard to maintain in the capital has surely unravelled."

The UN estimates at least 5,400 people have died since March, mainly in cities such as Homs. The UN is holding talks on a new resolution on Syria.
But Syria's ally Russia today sought to avert a swift UN Security Council vote and said it wanted to study recommendations from Arab observers before discussing a plan that calls for president Assad to give up power.

Today the government blamed an "armed terrorist group" for an attack on a gas pipeline in Homs near the border with Lebanon.