Syrian protesters demand expulsion of ambassador

By Raed Omari

AMMAN - Dozens of Syrians gathered outside their embassy in Amman on Thursday, chanting slogans against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad and calling for the expulsion of the Syrian ambassador in the Kingdom.

Meanwhile, another, smaller group of Syrians held a counter-protest, raising banners saying: "NATO will not intervene in Syria," and chanting slogans condemning the "US interference and the Zionist conspiracy" against their country.

During the protest, the embassy broadcast Syrian national ballads at loud volume - a move interpreted by protesters as "part of the regime's attempts to silence calls for freedom".

An anti-regime protester, who preferred to be referred to as "Al Homsi", told The Jordan Times that the Syrian ambassador in Amman provoked Syrians residing in Jordan and committed a "sin" when he ordered the broadcast while a group of Syrians was performing Eid Al Adha prayers in front of the embassy on the first day of Eid Al Adha on Sunday.

"That move was nothing short of an act of tyranny and subjugation… a desperate attempt to silence mouths calling for freedom," he said.

Marching arm-in-arm, the anti-regime protesters chanted slogans denouncing the regime and condemning the "massacres" committed by Syrian security forces in the cities of Daraa, Homs, Baniyas and Latakia.

"We wanted to show a sign of solidarity with our brothers back home who are facing difficult times and to emphasize our irreversible demand for freedom," said another protester, who identified herself as "Um Abdullah".

Among the slogans chanted by anti-regime protesters were: "The Syrians want a transitional council," "People want the downfall of the Baath regime" and "Syrians want to expel the ambassador."

Meanwhile, the pro-regime protesters carried pictures of Assad and the Syrian flag, chanting slogans rejecting what they described as a "conspiracy of the imperial powers" to destabilize Syria and end its resistance of US and Israeli "colonial plans".

A minor scuffle broke out between the two groups of protesters and security personnel intervened and separated them.

11 November 2011

Source: The Jordan Times.
Link: http://archive.jordantimes.com/index.php?news=43186.