Damascus’ practices in Syria’s Daraa escalate war: Deir ez-Zor official
DEIR EZ-ZOR, Syria (North Press) – “The Damascus government’s practices in Daraa, south Syria, means an escalation of the Syrian war and the entry into a dark tunnel,” said an official in Deir ez-Zor, east Syria, on Monday.
Since Thursday, the people of Daraa al-Balad and the surrounding besieged neighborhoods have been witnessing harsh humanitarian conditions with the onset of a military campaign by Syrian government forces and Iranian-backed factions.
“Since the eruption of the Syrian crisis, the Damascus government has been following the same scenario of killing, oppression, and scorched earth policy,” said co-chair of the council of the eastern Deir ez-Zor countryside Muhammad al-Omairi.
Amidst lack of several food products in shops, government forces who are besieging Daraa al-Balad and other neighborhoods have banned essentials from entering the area.
On Sunday, after sending massive military reinforcements to the vicinity of the city and after a failed attempt to storm it, government forces imposed a siege on the city of Jassim in the northern Daraa countryside.
“What Daraa is witnessing is clear evidence of arrogance of the Damascus government and its figures and the policy of the demographic change and displacing indigenous residents who said no to oppression,” al-Omairi told North Press.
“This is a clear message by Russian-backed Damascus in which it says that this is the fate of those who demand their rights, even if it is the right to live in freedom and dignity,” according to the official.
“The Damascus government has thrown out all agreements and local and international demands regarding dialogue and peaceful solution, which the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) has called for since its first days,” he pointed out.
“The Damascus government knows nothing but killing and displacement,” he added.
Al-Omairi demanded the international community and UN Security Council urgently intervene to halt the killing and excessive force against Daraa’s people in the Syrian south.
Three days ago, the Syrian Democratic Council condemned the government’s use of excessive force against unarmed civilians in southern Syria, warning of the escalation which it described as “dangerous” in the city of Daraa.