Israel Matzav

Breaking: French embassy guards open fire on pro-Assad demonstrators, US embassy alsio surrounded (UPDATED)

Based on an Arabic radio report, Israel Radio is reporting that the French and American embassies in Damascus have been surrounded by 'spontaneous' pro-Assad demonstrators and that guards at the French embassy have opened fire.

You may recall that the American and French ambassadors to Syria visited the rebellious city of Hama on Friday to the fury of Bashar al-Assad,

More details to follow.

UPDATE 5:04 PM

Israel Radio reports that the demonstrators tried to breach the French embassy grounds and did breach the American embassy grounds. Syria expelled all foreign correspondents from the country last week, so reports have been slow coming in.

They are playing a report from Al-Jazeera English correspondent Rula Amin (reporting from Beirut) who said that demonstrations started at 11:00 this morning and that the French guards wounded at least two and that at the American embassy the Syrian guards fired teargas after demonstrators sprayed graffiti on the buildings. US ambassador Robert Ford was in the building at the time.

It took two and a half hours to clear the demonstrators away and embassy staff complained that was far too long.

Labels: Bashar al-Assad, Hama, Syrian uprising

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 4:40 PM