BRUTALITY

Syrian Army Fires on Mourners

After procession turned into protest against Assad.

Yesterday Syrian forces beat a prominent opposition leader in broad daylight in the heart of Damascus and shot another one to death. Then, Saturday, security forces opened fire on the more than 50,000 mourners at the funeral for the slain opposition leader, Mashaal Tammo, killing five and injuring several others. Tammo, a leading Kurdish political figure, was killed by masked gunmen who stormed his house in northern Syria. The gunfire began when the mourning for Tammo turned into a protest of Syrian President Bashar al Assad. Many are saying the assassination may represent a pivotal moment for the uprisings. One activist said, “This assassination will be an essential turning point for the Kurdish movement all over Syria, where the silent, neutral Kurdish majority will join the revolution and expand their rallies. Mashaal’s blood will unify the Kurds.”