The Syrian government says it is pursuing “armed terrorist gangs” ‘New clash’ amid Syria talks call
The Syrian government says it is pursuing “armed terrorist gangs” Syrian officials say troops and tanks are being pulled out of the cities of Baniyas and Deraa after operations to quell anti-government protests.
Officials also said a “comprehensive national dialogue” on the unrest would begin in all provinces next week.
It comes after at least six people were killed as thousands attended anti-government protests after Friday prayers, human rights activists said.
The figure is much lower than after recent similar protests.
Syrian activists say at least 700 people have been killed in a crackdown by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, in response to protests against his rule that began two months ago.
A spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has described that figure as credible.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says it fears hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people have been detained in Syria in recent weeks.
Reports from Syria are hard to verify independently as foreign journalists are not allowed into the country.
The Syrian government says it is pursuing “armed terrorist gangs”, which it blames for the deaths of about 98 soldiers and members of the security services nationwide, and 22 police officers.
Confirming the troop withdrawal, Information Minister Adnan Hassan Mahmoud said army units had completed their pullout from the southern city of Deraa and started a gradual withdrawal from the coastal city of Baniyas.
Analysis
There’s a clear shift of tactics by President Assad’s embattled regime.
It let it be known on Thursday that security forces had been given strict orders not to open fire on demonstrators after Friday prayers. In general that pledge was held, though it seems to have slipped in a few areas.
State TV for the first time reported the demonstrations, though it played down their size, showed distant shots of only a few small ones, and kept the sound down so that viewers could not hear the chants – mainly calling for the regime to fall.
Although protesters say vigils and defiance – and repression in many forms – continue, the government is saying things are back to normal.
It’s not clear who will take part in the government’s national dialogue. Activists are suspicious that it’s a cosmetic move, aimed at appeasing outside pressures while real dissent continues to be stifled.
They want to see the thousands of detainees and political prisoners freed and the grip of security forces loosened, before they’ll believe the regime is serious about reforming itself.
He also promised that “the coming days will witness a comprehensive national dialogue” in all Syrian provinces.
President Assad would meet with “popular delegations” from around the country and listen to “their opinions, demands, and visions about what has currently been taking place in Syria”, Mr Mahmoud said.
It is not clear who will form the “popular delegations”, but the BBC’s Jim Muir in Beirut says the moves are a clear shift in tactics by President Assad.
Residents of Deraa said there were still tanks outside mosques after the conclusion of Friday prayers and that troops had fired into the air to disperse a large demonstration. Information from residents of Baniyas suggested that hundreds of troops were still there during Friday.
Before Friday prayers – which have become a rallying point for protesters in Syria as they have in several other Arab countries in recent months – an opposition leader said President Bashar al-Assad had promised troops would not fire on protesters.
Louai al-Hussain was quoting a presidential adviser, Buthaina Shaaban, after talks with officials to negotiate an end to the crisis.
Ms Shaaban made a similar statement when demonstrations began in mid-March.
As Friday prayers came to an end, reports started to come in of protest marches leaving mosques in many parts of the country.
Some protesters carried banners or flags with “freedom” written on them while others were reported to chant: “We want the overthrow of the regime.”
Despite the apparent pledge of restraint, three people were killed in the country’s third largest city, Homs, when security forces opened fire on demonstrators.
Amateur footage has emerged of various demonstrations on Friday
Homs has been the scene of a major military operation since Monday. Areas of the city have been shelled by tanks, and troops have been conducting house-to-house searches and arrests to find or intimidate protesters.
Two people were killed in al-Qaboun, a northern suburb of the capital, Damascus, activists said, when plainclothes gunmen opened fire on protesters.
Activists also said one person was killed in a village outside Deraa, the epicentre of the anti-government unrest.
Protests elsewhere in the country were broken up by security forces using tear gas, water cannons and batons.
CLICKABLE
Qamishli 
A mobile phone snapshot, reportedly taken in Qamishli on 29 April, shows protesters carrying banners written in Arabic and Kurdish demanding democracy.
Damascus
This footage, which the BBC cannot verify, seems to show demonstrators in Midan, central Damascus, on Friday afternoon. A source in Damascus says he could see a lot of security and police officers in the main areas of Damascus after protests began after Friday prayers finished.
Talbisah
This unverified video seems to show a peaceful protest in Talbisah. Moments into the footage, tanks fire on unarmed civilians. Wyre Davis reports.
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Deraa 
A soldier walks past men in civilian clothes lying on the ground with their hands tied behind their backs in this still photo taken from an amateur video.
Homs
11 May: The Times’ chief foreign correspondent, Martin Fletcher, tells the BBC Radio Four’s Today programme how he was detained in Homs and the hard line that Syria is taking with protesters.
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