#tremseh

[payaltest-blog]

First Video Evidence Of The Free Syrian Army Using Tanks To Attack The Syrian Army

This video has been sent to me by HamaEcho which to knowledge is the first video showing the FSA using a tank to attack the Syrian army, in this instance in Rastan

According to the text below the video (translation by sherbalkis) the action was carried out by Hamza Brigades commanded by First Lieutenant Ibrahim Ayoub as a response to an attack on Altrimssh mosque and the events in Tremseh.  Their statements claims they captured the tank after an attack on checkpoint at a house owned by a Dr. Mahmoud Tlass Farzat which had been occupied by shabiha, killing 12 men.  After capturing the tank they proceeded to attack a building they claim is used as a checkpoint by shabiha and security forces, killing 30

The statement claims a further 5 Syrian soldiers were killed in the operations.  They also state no Free Syrian Army members were killed in the attacks. I've previously posted about the Al-Farouq brigade's tanks and having spoken to activists my understanding is the Hamza brigades and Al-Farouq brigades work together, but it's unclear if the use of this take is part of a wider escalation by those groups.  The tank pictured in the video appears to be a T-62.

To my knowledge this is the first time the FSA have been filmed using tanks in combat, and it's hard to know if this was a decision made on the day after capturing the tank, or a shift in tactics among the FSA in Rastan.  It seems that after the apparent success it may be likely we'll see more tanks being used by the FSA in Rastan. Update July 20th Further footage of tanks in action in the same area has been posted showing one tank in action being hit by fire from Assad's forces, and another tank being destroyed, killing some of the crew.

You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at [email protected]

[payaltest-blog]

Syrian State TV Lies About Turks In Tremseh

In an article in today's New York Times a reference was made to claims on Syrian State TV that Turkish fighters were involved in fighting in Tremseh, site of a recent alleged massacre

State television also broadcast pictures of a roomful of weapons that it said had been captured from the town, the inventory mostly underscoring just what a crude and simple arsenal the opposition uses. It included 54 guns, 9 rocket-propelled grenade launchers, 5,000 cartridges, 25 satellite telephones and 24 mortars, the latter looking as if they had been welded by hand. The broadcast also showed the identification card of what it said was a Turkish fighter in the group, and a captured man named Abdelsalem Darwish said there had been a Turkish fighter and some Libyans there, as well as money and arms from Turkey.

Activist THE_47th posted a screenshot of the ID card as it was shown on Syrian State TV

Now the card has a few features that suggest the individual isn't Turkish.  First the name isn't a typically Turkish name, and Hama is mentioned on the card, which would make sense as the name at the top, Islahiye, is the location of a major Syrian refugee camp.  It also happens to look nothing like a Turkish ID card, for example (source)

You can contact the author on Twitter @Brown_Moses or email [email protected]

[thepopulist-blog]

Syria - Tremseh Massacre: Truth behind the Massacre 14-07-2012

This broadcast reveals the truth behind the events in the Syrian town of Treimseh. The confessions of the Terrorists are shown, with english subtitles. And note the NATO and US weapons!

[shortformblog]

The least that can be said about this letter about what happened in Tremseh is that it did not rely on facts. As diplomatically as possible, we say that this letter was very rushed.

Syrian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jihad Makdissi • Disputing claims made by United Nations special envoy Kofi Annan that the country used heavy weaponry in an attack in  Tremseh earlier this week. The casualty count in the attack also differs greatly — Syria says 37 of its fighters, along with two civilians, died. Meanwhile, activists claim the number is more likely 100 to 220. UN monitors confirmed heavy fighting took place in the village on Thursday.

[diadoumenos-blog]

UN observers have reached the village of Tremseh to investigate reports of mass killings on Thursday, a spokeswoman for the mission says. Sausan Ghosheh said the monitors had entered the village, 25km north-west of the city of Hama. The killing of up to 200 villagers triggered international condemnation.

Syria: UN observers seek to probe Tremseh killings

[kileyrae]

The shelling was too strong to go outside, we did not know what was happening there. After some hours everything fell silent. I went outside of my house. There was destruction everywhere and bodies under the rubble. Most of the houses were damaged or destroyed.

Syria massacre: Residents tell of the death on the streets of Tremseh

[anarcho-queer]

Syria Massacre leaves 200 dead in Tremseh

Some 200 people have been killed in an attack on the Syrian village of Tremseh, opposition activists say.

If confirmed, it would be the bloodiest single event in the Syrian conflict.

Residents said the village, in Hama province, was attacked with helicopter gunships and tanks, and later by the pro-government Shabiha militia, who carried out execution-style killings.

State media blamed "terrorist groups" who were trying to raise tension ahead of a key UN Security Council meeting.

The mandate for the UN's observer mission to Syria expires on 20 July.

UN observers are now trying to get to Tremseh to investigate the killings.

UN and Arab League special envoy for Syria Kofi Annan said he was "shocked and appalled" by the news from Tremseh, adding that it was "desperately urgent that this violence and brutality stops".

Some 16,000 people are thought to have been killed since the uprising against Bashar al-Assad's regime began in March 2011.

Individual reports of casualties often cannot be independently verified, as Syria severely restricts journalists' freedom of movement.

[where-lies-the-strangling-fruit]

"UN and Arab League envoy for Syria Kofi Annan has said he is "shocked and appalled" at reports of mass killings in the Syrian village of Tremseh."