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| Gunmen in Damascus Kill Brother of Parliament Speaker | Gunmen in Damascus Kill Brother of Parliament Speaker |
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| BEIRUT, Lebanon — Gunmen assassinated the brother of the Syrian Parliament speaker on Tuesday in a central Damascus neighborhood, the official Syrian news agency reported, as clashes between government forces and the rebels convulsed most major cities and seven defecting Syrian generals fled into neighboring Turkey. | BEIRUT, Lebanon — Gunmen assassinated the brother of the Syrian Parliament speaker on Tuesday in a central Damascus neighborhood, the official Syrian news agency reported, as clashes between government forces and the rebels convulsed most major cities and seven defecting Syrian generals fled into neighboring Turkey. |
| The violence aroused new concern about the faltering diplomatic efforts to end the conflict. At the United Nations, the under secretary general for political affairs, Jeffrey Feltman, briefed the Security Council and told reporters afterward that the antagonists in Syria appeared unable to break out of the “military logic” that force will dictate the outcome. He also expressed hope that the Security Council could put aside its divisiveness on the Syria issue and “act in a unified fashion” to help the special Syria representative of the United Nations and the Arab League, Lakhdar Brahimi, who is to brief council members later this month. | |
| “Our overriding message is one of great concern,” Mr. Feltman told reporters. “The situation inside Syria is turning grimmer every day and the risk is growing that the crisis could explode outward into an already volatile region.” | |
| The assassination victim, Mohammad Osama al-Laham, was felled by bullets fired into his car while en route to work, in the Midan neighborhood of Damascus, the Syrian capital, said an account by the official news agency, SANA. | |
| The agency attributed the attack to terrorists, the government’s standard description for the opposition to Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, and said the motive was to deprive Syria of skilled loyalists needed in the country. Mr. Laham, the brother of Jihad Laham, the speaker of the People’s Assembly, held a doctorate in agriculture. | The agency attributed the attack to terrorists, the government’s standard description for the opposition to Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, and said the motive was to deprive Syria of skilled loyalists needed in the country. Mr. Laham, the brother of Jihad Laham, the speaker of the People’s Assembly, held a doctorate in agriculture. |
| The assassination came one day after the funeral of Mohamed Rafeh, 30, a television star who was abducted and killed, apparently by opponents of the government, over the weekend. | The assassination came one day after the funeral of Mohamed Rafeh, 30, a television star who was abducted and killed, apparently by opponents of the government, over the weekend. |
| Mr. Rafeh had been outspoken in his support for the fierce government suppression of armed opponents as a peaceful protest movement that began in March 2011 descended into civil war. An online statement from a rebel faction accused him of being a government informant. | Mr. Rafeh had been outspoken in his support for the fierce government suppression of armed opponents as a peaceful protest movement that began in March 2011 descended into civil war. An online statement from a rebel faction accused him of being a government informant. |
| In Turkey, which has become one of Mr. Assad’s biggest opponents, news agencies reported that seven Syrian army generals arrived with their families through the border town of Reyhanli in Hatay province, escorted under tight security. The generals were sent to the Apaydin military camp, home to high-ranking military officers and their families who have fled Syria. The Web site of Turkey’s Zaman newspaper said the latest defections brought the total number of Syrian generals who have defected to 42. | In Turkey, which has become one of Mr. Assad’s biggest opponents, news agencies reported that seven Syrian army generals arrived with their families through the border town of Reyhanli in Hatay province, escorted under tight security. The generals were sent to the Apaydin military camp, home to high-ranking military officers and their families who have fled Syria. The Web site of Turkey’s Zaman newspaper said the latest defections brought the total number of Syrian generals who have defected to 42. |
| Government and rebel reports detailed clashes in virtually every major urban area on Tuesday, extending what had already been described as some of the worst violence in months. | Government and rebel reports detailed clashes in virtually every major urban area on Tuesday, extending what had already been described as some of the worst violence in months. |
| The mayhem including three bombs that exploded late in the day in Qudsiya, a working-class suburb of Damascus, according to the SANA and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a group based in Britain with contacts inside Syria. At least 10 people died and 40 were injured, the observatory said in a brief statement. It said the bomb went off in Zahra Square, near an area that is heavily populated by Republican Guards, an elite military unit whose members are drawn from President Assad’s minority Alawite sect, which controls Syria. The guards have been heavily involved in fighting opponents of the regime. | The mayhem including three bombs that exploded late in the day in Qudsiya, a working-class suburb of Damascus, according to the SANA and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a group based in Britain with contacts inside Syria. At least 10 people died and 40 were injured, the observatory said in a brief statement. It said the bomb went off in Zahra Square, near an area that is heavily populated by Republican Guards, an elite military unit whose members are drawn from President Assad’s minority Alawite sect, which controls Syria. The guards have been heavily involved in fighting opponents of the regime. |
| The bombings were part of a series of killings and attacks with booby-trapped cars that have targeted people or neighborhoods close to the seat of Mr. Assad’s government | The bombings were part of a series of killings and attacks with booby-trapped cars that have targeted people or neighborhoods close to the seat of Mr. Assad’s government |
| The Local Coordinating Committees, a collection of activist organizations across Syria, said the daily toll on Monday reached at least 159, including 72 killed in Idlib, and 47 in Damascus and its suburbs. | The Local Coordinating Committees, a collection of activist organizations across Syria, said the daily toll on Monday reached at least 159, including 72 killed in Idlib, and 47 in Damascus and its suburbs. |
| People in Damascus said the fighting on Monday was the fiercest they could remember since July, with thousands of people having fled as a Palestinian faction that supports Mr. Assad skirmished with government opponents in three southern neighborhoods. | People in Damascus said the fighting on Monday was the fiercest they could remember since July, with thousands of people having fled as a Palestinian faction that supports Mr. Assad skirmished with government opponents in three southern neighborhoods. |
| “It’s a real war,” said an activist reached in southern Damascus via Skype, who used only one name, Eman, for her safety. “Explosions, bombing and gunfire, and of course the helicopters, which have become part of the sky in Damascus now, like birds,” she said. | “It’s a real war,” said an activist reached in southern Damascus via Skype, who used only one name, Eman, for her safety. “Explosions, bombing and gunfire, and of course the helicopters, which have become part of the sky in Damascus now, like birds,” she said. |
| The latest violence came as Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain, a strong supporter of nonmilitary aid to the Syrian uprising, suggested it was possible to arrange a safe departure and possible immunity for Mr. Assad if that would hasten the end of the conflict, the longest and most violent of the Arab Spring revolutions. | The latest violence came as Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain, a strong supporter of nonmilitary aid to the Syrian uprising, suggested it was possible to arrange a safe departure and possible immunity for Mr. Assad if that would hasten the end of the conflict, the longest and most violent of the Arab Spring revolutions. |
| Asked about such a possibility in an interview on Saudi Arabia’s Al Arabiya television, Mr. Cameron said: “Done. Anything, anything to get that man out of the country and to have a safe transition in Syria.” | Asked about such a possibility in an interview on Saudi Arabia’s Al Arabiya television, Mr. Cameron said: “Done. Anything, anything to get that man out of the country and to have a safe transition in Syria.” |
| He also said: “Of course I would favor him facing the full force of international law and justice for what he’s done. I am certainly not offering him an exit plan to Britain but if he wants to leave he could leave, that could be arranged.” | He also said: “Of course I would favor him facing the full force of international law and justice for what he’s done. I am certainly not offering him an exit plan to Britain but if he wants to leave he could leave, that could be arranged.” |
| Mr. Assad has shown no intention of resigning. His opponents have said they would not negotiate with Mr. Assad, whom they blame for the uprising, which has caused an estimated 35,000 deaths according to activist groups. | Mr. Assad has shown no intention of resigning. His opponents have said they would not negotiate with Mr. Assad, whom they blame for the uprising, which has caused an estimated 35,000 deaths according to activist groups. |
Neil MacFarquhar reported from Beirut, and Rick Gladstone from New York. Hania Mourtada contributed reporting from Beirut, Hala Droubi from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Sebnem Arsu from Istanbul. | Neil MacFarquhar reported from Beirut, and Rick Gladstone from New York. Hania Mourtada contributed reporting from Beirut, Hala Droubi from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Sebnem Arsu from Istanbul. |