Syrian Forces Kill 24, protesters tell Assad to go

Syrian Forces killed 24 civilians on Friday, a prominent rights lawyer said, as tens of thousands of people called on President Bashar al-Assad to step down in some of the biggest demonstrations. Challenging Assad's military crackdown, demonstrators took to the streets again, after Friday prayer across the country, from towns near the western Lebanese border to the desert regions near Iraq. The people who marched carried placards which reads, "Bashar get out of our lives". Encouraged by the widening protests, prominent opposition figures plan to convene a 'national salvation' conference in Damascus on July 16th to reach a solution for solving Syria's political crisis. As per the statement by the organizers, which was sent to Reuters said that "In the light of the military solution to be chosen by the regime to end the revolution, the conference aims to reach a consensus guided by the popular protest movement for a transitional period and a national salvation government that lays the foundation for a new constitution and free elections". The statement was signed by 50 people, including Kurdish leader Mishaal al-Tammo, former Judge Haitham al-Maleh, Nawaf al-Bashir, a tribal leader from the eastern province of Deir al-Zor, economist Aref Dalia, a fierce critic of the Assad's family involvement in business and Walid al-Bunni, a physician who played a major role in the movement for democracy crushed by Assad ten years ago. With an arbitrary arrest of 1000 people over the last week alone, organizers said the conference would be far more difficult to convene than a meeting of intellectuals allowed by the authorities last week that gave a rare platform to several opposition figures. Lawyer Razan Zaitouna told Reuters by phone that the 24 dead included seven protestors in the central city of Homs, scene of widening protest against Assad and 14 villagers in the north western province of  Idlib, where troops backed by tanks and helicopters have been storming villages to subdue dissent. The assaults are mainly focussed on the northern section of the Jabal al-Zawya region, home to 15000 people, many of whom are trying to flee to Turkey, which already has refugees from Idlib. Authorities have banned most international media from operating in Syria, since it has become difficult to verify the report from activists and authorities. Protestors have taken to the streets for 14 weeks to protest against Assad in unrest which has claimed the lives of around 1300 civilians, with security forces arresting over 12000 people and shooting security personnel who refused to fire on civilians. Authorities also claims the death of 500 police and soldiers who have been killed by the gunmen, they also blame for most of the civilian deaths. Along the military crackdown, Assad has promised a national dialogue on political reforms. The United States and European Union have imposed sanctions against Syria's security forces for human rights abuses and against Iran for supporting them. The Treasury said the four major branches of the Syria's security forces and said all their assets subject to US jurisdiction will be frozen and that the Americans are barred from any dealings with them.  Reported by   AR