Syria army sweeps Homs, Western envoys warned

Syrian troops swept through the central city of Homs, arresting “armed men” and confiscating “stockpiles of weapons,” the pro-government Al-Watan newspaper said yesterday.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Walid Muallem warned the French and US ambassadors not to travel outside Damascus after they both visited the flashpoint central city of Hama earlier this month. “An uneasy calm has reigned in Homs since Tuesday afternoon after top quality operations by the army, who arrested a number of armed men and seized large quantities of weapons,” the pro-government Al-Watan said.

There were “bloody clashes” that left “soldiers and an officer wounded,” it said.

Al-Watan added that the “dialogue launched by civic leaders had resumed in a bid to contain dissent and re-establish unity,” in Homs, 160 kilometres north of the capital.

Activists say pro-regime gunmen have killed at least 20 people Homs since Monday, including seven mourners at a funeral.

Fierce fighting rocked Homs at the weekend, with activists reporting more than 30 people killed in clashes among Christians, Sunni Muslims and President Bashar al-Assad’s minority Alawite community. Syria’s third largest city, Homs has spearheaded demonstrations against President Bashar al-Assad and his regime since protests erupted on March 15.

The army had already entered the city in May in a bid to stop rallies calling for the fall of Mr Assad’s regime. Meanwhile, security services arrested opposition figure Georges Sabra and a lawyer.