Damascus
(AsiaNews / Agencies) - Syrian rebels say they will kill dozens of Iranians who
they kidnapped in August, if Assad's army fails to withdraw from Ghuta, the
area east of the province of Damascus. The
Revolutionary Military Council - with a video message released on the internet
(see photo) - gave a 48 hour deadline, which expires today.
On
5 August, the rebels kidnapped 48 Iranians accusing them of being the
Pasdaran military advisers to the Syrian regime. Tehran
has appealed for the lives of hostages, saying that they are all pilgrims -
among them women and children - who travelled to Syria to visit the shrine of Shiite
Sayyida Zeinab. The
Iranian Foreign Ministry has confirmed that there are former retired Revolutionary
Guards among them, but denied that they were on a foreign mission.
The
rebels threaten that when the ultimatum expires they will "kill every
Iranian prisoner for every martyr that falls."
This
is the second time since August that the rebels have launched a similar threat.
Analysts
and observers highlight the rebels' frustration, who have always hoped for assistance
from allied countries to oust Bashar al-Assad. But the
international community still appears to be divided. Some,
such as Russia, China and Iran, support the Damascus regime, others like the
European Union, the United States, and especially Saudi Arabia and Qatar,
support the rebels.
The
situation is very tense with all sides waiting for the first wrong step that
could spark all-out war.
In
recent days
the growing tension on the Turkish-Syrian has increased this risk, after a
mortar fired by the Damascus army hit a Turkish village on the border, killing
a family of five. The
parliament in Ankara has instructed the army to attack Syrian targets beyond
the borders.
According
to news agency Anadolu, the Turkish army has deployed soldiers and artillery on
the border with Syria and yesterday returned fire after a mortar hit a Syrian
area near the village of Guyecci (Hatay), with no casualties. The
Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has reiterated that Ankara does not
want to go to war with Syria. In
many cities, Turkish civil society organizations and opposition parties have organized
demonstrations against a possible war in the Middle East.