Syrian conflict putt al terrorist group militants nearer to Europe: Britain

Syria a 'game changer' for Britain terror threat, warns main office intelligence chief.

The Syrian conflict has become a “profound game changer” and poses the largest terror threat to the United Kingdom and Europe for a decade, the house Office’s terror chief has warned.

The conflict in Asian country has brought al terrorist group fighters nearer to Europe and in larger numbers than ever before, deeply ever-changing the character of the act of terrorism threat, Britain's high security official aforementioned on Wednesday.

Syria could be a terribly profound game-changer, Farr told a security conference in London. "The blunt truth is there square measure additional individuals related to al Qaeda and AQ-associated organizations currently in operation in Asian country than there ever are before that near Europe.

Charles Farr aforementioned there square measure thousands of al-Qaeda-inspired fighters currently in operation within the war torn country with several desirous to attack the united kingdom and different Western nations.

He aforementioned there has ne'er been numerous teams and fanatics coupled to the phobia organization therefore near Europe.

Britons square measure among them and also the worry is that they have already or can come back to the United Kingdom bent organizing atrocities here.

Hundreds and presumably thousands of al Qaeda-linked individuals had been drawn to the two-year-old rising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, aforementioned Charles Farr, Director General of Britain's workplace for Security and Counter-Terrorism.

Groups in Asian country plan to attack Europe and clearly during this chaotic atmosphere have each the aptitude and also the suggests that to try to therefore exploitation, amongst others, returning foreign fighters WHO square measure returning to Europe, he told the conference.
They square measure in operation at Associate in Nursing intensity that is unique since the events in Iraq in 2005/2006, in different words the height of the Iraqi terrorist threat. They’re a lot of nearer to America, in a lot of larger numbers, Associate in nursing fighting with intensity we've got not seen before.

However, the minister stopped in need of commenting directly on the case or criticizing the Guardian newspaper, which revealed the leaks.

U.S. military challenging in Syrian stay difficult and "red line"

Syria used chemical weapons against rebels on Thursday, and "red line" for action.

The Obama administration is promising to intensify help to Syrian rebels when terminal Damascus used chemical weapons against opponents of President Bashar al-Assad, however the military choices facing the u. s. are not any easier than before that a supply near the matter same on Thursday.

Assad's forces used the agent GB on a "small scale" many times against the opposition, inflicting a hundred to one hundred fifty deaths, Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security advisor, told reporters on a call.

There was no immediate word on the kind of weaponry the U. S. would offer or once it'd be delivered. The White House same earlier that Obama had approved direct military help to the beleaguered rebels however declined to administer details or say whether or not any of it'd be fatal instrument.

President Barack Obama has been slow to maneuver toward military help for Syria's opposition within the past and is probably going to still move judiciously, trying to figure with allies in any intervention within the country's warfare.

The U.S.A. confirmed that Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syrian Arab Republic used chemical weapons against rebels on weekday, a "red line" for action set by President Barack Obama.

White House officers on Thursday compete down the prospects of a no-fly zone, citing the open-ended prices associate degreed uncertainty of such an operation in an exceedingly place like Syrian Arab Republic, with its well-defended air area. However they didn't rule it out either.

An a lot of probably move would be to start providing fatal help to Syrian rebels. The White House same on weekday it'd increase support to the opposition Supreme Military Council, together with military support, but it didn't specify fatal aid.

Syrian rebels target security officials in capital

BEIRUT—Rebels seeking to topple Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime launched three separate attacks on his security forces around Damascus on Tuesday, killing two ranking officers and rocking the capital with a booby-trapped car, activists and state media said. 

The attacks took place as a U.N. team observing Syria's violence-ridden truce was visiting another area near the capital, the restive suburb of Douma. Activists and amateur videos reported shelling and gunfire in that area Tuesday, just a day after 55 people were killed across Syria—most of them in a city the observers had recently visited.

Tuesday's attacks underline the increasing militarization of the 13-month-old conflict and show the effort by Assad's opponents to chip away at the security services he relies upon to quash dissent. 

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said one intelligence officer was killed in the capital's Barzeh neighborhood but gave no information on how he died.

Separately, an army truck blew up as it was driving through downtown Damascus. The blast in Marjah Square near the Iranian Cultural Center left blood and shattered glass on the road. The truck's driver and two passengers in a nearby car were injured and taken to a hospital. 

Security officials at the scene said the truck driver did not appear to be implicated in the blast, suggesting the explosives had been planted on the vehicle. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. 

The Syrian government did not immediately comment on those attacks.

The state news service, however, said "terrorists" killed a retired lieutenant colonel and his brother in a Damascus suburb in a third attack.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks. CONTINUE . . . . .

EU imposes new sanctions on Syrian regime

LUXEMBOURG, The European Union on Monday banned the sale of luxury goods and products to Syria that can have military as well as civilian uses as the U.N. political chief demanded that the Syrian government stop using heavy weapons and comply with a cease-fire.

B. Lynn Pascoe told the U.N. Security Council in New York that the cease-fire, which went into effect on April 12, remains "incomplete" and "human rights violations are still perpetrated with impunity." He said Syria has also failed to fully implement international envoy Kofi Annan's six-point peace plan, saying the government's compliance with requirements to release detainees and allow peaceful demonstrations "are clearly insufficient."

The EU ban on luxury items appears to take direct aim at some of Syrian President Bashar Assad's most loyal supporters: the business community and prosperous merchant classes that are key to propping up the regime. An influential bloc, the business leaders have long traded political freedoms for economic privileges in Syria.

So far, the wealthy classes have stuck to the sidelines, but if the economic squeeze reaches them, it could be a game changer, analysts say.

Assad, who inherited power in 2000, spent years shifting the country away from the socialism espoused by his father. In the process, he helped boost a new and vibrant merchant class that transformed Syria's economic landscape even as the regime's political trappings remained unchanged.

Emails purportedly from Assad and his wife Asma, published in February by London's Guardian newspaper, indicated that the Syrian first lady has a taste for the finer things in life. The emails, whose authenticity has been questioned, revealed the first lady shopping online for crystal-encrusted Christian Louboutin stilettos, expensive jewelry, custom-made furniture and other luxury goods as violence swept the country.

EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton said the EU's 27 foreign ministers approved the new set of sanctions — the 14th in the past year — "because of deep concern about the situation and continuing violence in spite of the cease-fire."

"We expect the government to withdraw all troops and heavy weapons from towns and cities (and) we want to make sure that the regime gives full access to humanitarian organizations."

The U.N. estimates that more than 9,000 people have been killed since an uprising against the government of Assad began 13 months ago.

Pascoe, the U.N. undersecretary-general for political affairs, told the Security Council "we are at a pivotal moment in Syria."

He said the U.N. hopes the deployment of 300 unarmed U.N. military observers, which the Security Council authorized on Saturday, "will help to stop the killing and consolidate the calm" with the aim of creating the conditions "for a serious and credible political process."

To create these conditions, Pascoe said, "it is essential that the government of Syria fully and immediately implement its obligations to stop using heavy weapons and to pull back military forces from population centers."

He said it is also essential that Syria implement other aspects of the Annan plan, noting "little progress" on its requirement to allow unimpeded access for aid workers to an estimated 1 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.

He said Annan, the joint U.N.-Arab League envoy, will brief the Security Council on Tuesday.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told reporters late Monday that it is "absolutely important" that Syria protect the monitors and ensure their freedom of access and freedom of movement. There must be "no such obstacles," he stressed.

Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, again urged the Syrian government "to seize this chance for a peaceful political solution to the crisis — before it's too late."

The U.S. welcomes "the positive statements from various Syrian opposition figures and groups" about the expanded U.N. observer mission, she said, "but we are all sober in our expectations."

"The Syrian regime should make no mistake: we will be watching its actions day and night," Rice said. "We will work to ensure there will be consequences should the Syrian regime continue to ignore this Council's decisions, press ahead with its murderous rampage, and flout the will of the international community."

Syria's U.N. Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari strongly criticized Qatar, saying its leader didn't believe that the Annan mission would succeed. Ja'afari accused Qatar and Saudi Arabia of financing "terrorist groups," which the Syrian government blame for the violence.

Previous rounds of U.S. and EU sanctions have done little to stop the bloodshed, although there are signs the Syrian economy is suffering. International measures against Assad's regime have depleted its foreign currency reserves by half, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said last week.

EU experts will work out later precisely which goods will be included in the new embargo. One of the diplomats said so-called "dual-use" goods can include anything from vehicles to fertilizers and other chemicals.

The Syrian people are calling for peaceful change

The Syrian people are calling for peaceful change

William Hague urged the "discredited" Syrian regime to end its violent as the United Nations Security Council adopted. A statement condemning attacks on civilians and widespread human rights abuses.

Intensification of the three-month-old bloody crackdown against anti-government protests, the international body agreed the wording – with only Syria's neighbour Lebanon dissociating itself from the text.

Hague said: "I welcome the UN security council presidential statement on Syria.

"The Security Council demonstrates the rising international concern at the unacceptable behaviour of the regime and shows that President Assad is increasingly isolated. It comes on top of a fourth round of EU sanctions put in place earlier this week.

The UN Security Council finally broke through a near-unanimous statement condemning President Bashar al-Assad for unleashing his forces on civilians and violating human rights.

Though the presidential statement has no teeth and was less than the full Security Council resolution that by the US, UK and France, it is an indication of growing impatience within the international community towards the Syrian crackdown.

Hague said: “The Syrian people are calling for peaceful change. I call on President Assad's regime to end its violence and to allow genuine political reform.

"Until it does, the regime will be discredited amongst its own people and facing increased pressure internationally."

Rapidly – increasing pressure on the 15 members of the Security Council to issue a condemnation of the regime's actions. Russia, China, India, Brazil and South Africa had been resisting the move.

Lebanon's deputy UN ambassador Caroline Ziade said that "while we express our deep regret for the loss of innocent victims," the presidential statement "does not help in addressing the current situation in Syria."

Army steps up in Syrian

Army steps up in Syrian  Homs campaign

A focal point for pro-democracy protests, activists and residents said that’s the Syrian army stepped up its military operation in the central city of Homs.

‘There are casualties and many people have been arrested. We are very scared,’ a resident in Homs, who asked to be referred to only by his first name, Ahmed.

‘There is heavy military deployment in Homs; military checkpoints are everywhere in the city. There is heavy shooting in Bab Sbaa, one house was burned and the humanitarian conditions are dire,’ the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in a statement.

It is hard to verify witness accounts as Syrian authorities have expelled most international media organisations.

Syrian authorities blame armed groups with Islamist links for violence across the country and say at least 500 policemen and soldiers have been killed since March.