US condemns Syria violence
SYRIAN troops and tanks poured into protester hotspot Deraa yesterday as autocratic President Bashar al-Assad attempted to crush resistance in the city where an uprising began a month ago.
At least 18 people were killed, causing the White House to condemn the use of violence and threaten to impose “targeted sanctions”.
Security forces have killed more than 350 civilians across Syria since unrest broke out in Deraa, with a third of the victims killed in the past three days.
Meanwhile, at least two Nato bombs hit Gaddafi’s Tripoli headquarters last night, with the alliance appearing to escalate its campaign in the country. Fighting continued to rage between rebels and pro-government forces in the besieged Libyan city of Misrata.
Forces loyal to Gaddafi said they were pulling back from Misrata last week to hand over to local tribal forces. But fighting has continued in a two-month-old siege that has killed hundreds of civilians and made the city into a symbol of resistance to Gaddafi.
Clashes between protesters government forces in Yemen also killed two people and injured dozens more as a fresh wave of violence broke out.