Beirut (AsiaNews) - An UN-commissioned report makes new accusations against Syrian forces. Syrian president Bashar al-Assad says his government will be able to find a way out of the current crisis. However, reliable sources in Israel indicate that an attempt was made to assassinate several top regime officials a few days ago.
In its latest report, a commission on Syria appointed by the UN Human Rights Council documented human rights violations by both the Syrian army and opposition forces.
The report criticises the rebels for torturing and killing captured Syrian soldiers. It also found that Syrian forces, in addition to torture, "employed a wide range of military means, including heavy shelling of civilian areas".
"State security forces continued to use lethal force against anti-government demonstrations in Idlib, Homs, Aleppo, Hama, Damascus and Deraa and in numerous villages throughout the country."
The report says noted a pattern of serious violations, in which Syrian security forces blockade villages, and carry out house-to-house searches looking for opposition force. In some operations, entire families were executed.
For his part, Syrian President Assad, during a meeting with Iran's Communications and Information Technology Minister Reza Taqipour, said, "Syria has been able to overcome the pressures and threats it has faced for years and is able to get out of this crisis thanks to the strength of its people and commitment to unity and independence."
Recent reports in Israeli daily Haaretz disagrees. Despite Syria's official denials, reliable information cited by the paper indicate that an attempt was made to assassinate several top regime officials four days ago.
The information shows that Syrian President Bashar Assad's brother-in-law, Assef Shawkat, and several other senior officials were poisoned, but were saved by prompt medical treatment.
If true, the incident would be an important milestone in the ongoing revolution because "it shows the opposition has penetrated Assad's inner circle, casting doubt on the regime's stability." (PD)