The Syrian community in Malta yesterday held a peaceful demonstration in Valletta, demanding a “free country and true democratic elections” in anticipation of more conflict and repression in the city of Homs.

What are the international forces waiting for?

A group of some 70 people yesterday filled every crevice of Republic Street with harmonious chanting, pleading with the European Union not to turn a deaf ear to their families’ cries.

A young man from Idlib – in the northwest of Syria – said he could not understand why the West was dragging its feet when it came to defending the Syrian citizens’ human rights.

The man, who has just lost his friend in the uprising, said: “The US and the EU were there for the Libyans, why aren’t they there for us now? Whom can we turn to? Iraq? Malta is our voice in the EU.

“Syria is richer than Libya. Libya has oil... we have oil and gas. So what are the international forces waiting for,” he asked, as he recounted horrific tales of torture in the Middle Eastern country.

Another man said communication with his family was sporadic, because of the continuous power cuts across Syria. Citizens, in the meantime, were still being kidnapped, tortured or killed, and he always feared the worst when he managed to call home, he said.

A Syrian couple said that on Saturday, their families in Homs had been warned by the Syrian government that protesters had a 72-hour deadline to stop demonstrations and hand in their weapons. The western city, about 162 kilometres north of Damascus, has been an epicenter of unrest.

The local protesters joined the Syrian diaspora around the world in protest.

Although Sunday marks the start of the week in Syria, schools and shops remained closed in the southern Daraa province, where the revolt against President Bashar al-Assad broke out in March and from there soon rippled across other regions.

President Al-Assad has been in power since 2000 following a three-decade rule by his father Hafez.