Syria moves to stop ‘day of defiance’

• Syrian regime tries to prevent ‘day of defiance’ protests • Nato pledges to up the military pressure against Libya 9.21am: A Red Cross delegation has reached Deraa to bring medical supplies to the town and carry out an assessment of the need for more aid, a spokesman told the Guardian. ICRC spokesman Saleh Dabbakeh said: “They have gone to assess the situation and the need and they have taken with them some first aid equipment. They went yesterday after being granted access. The head of our mission, Marianne Gasser, is leading the team. I know they have entered Deraa.” The ICRC demanded “urgent” access to Deraa yesterday . 8.54am: Human Rights Watch has likened Syria’s treatment of the southern town of Deraa to Israel’s blockade of Gaza . In a strongly-worded statement the group’s Middle East director Sarah Leah Whitson said: “Even if the Syrian army is truly ‘hunting terrorists’, that is no reason to prevent the town’s residents from leaving and to deny old women their medication. Syria has protested repeatedly about Israel’s closure of Gaza, but it’s doing the same to Deraa’s residents.” She also highlighted a report in the Guardian this week about the detention of a 22-year-old relative of the political activist Ayman al-Aswad . Whitson said: “Syria’s security services apparently know no bounds. In holding someone’s brother or son as hostage, they are acting more like a criminal gang than a legitimate state force.” Human Rights Watch also questioned state media reports that the army is withdrawing from Deraa. Eyewitnesses in the town told it that the military was still restricting movement, including the import of essential food and medicine items. Whitson said: “The Syrian government is collectively punishing the residents of Daraa because some demonstrators from the town dared protest against it. It would appear that the government has a lot to hide, because it’s refusing to let Daraa residents out or independent observers in.” 8.45am: Welcome to our live coverage of the unrest in the Middle East on a key day for the protest movement in Syria. The opposition is planning to take to the streets after Friday prayers in a “day of defiance” against the regime. The government has been arresting hundreds of people in and around Damascus to try to head off demonstrations in the capital. Leading Syrian dissident Ammar Abdulhamid writes: The inhabitants of the Damascene suburb of Saqba tell of security forces conducting house-to-house raids over the last three days leading to hundreds of arrest. The campaign is taking place under the supervision of units affiliated with Maher Al-Assad’s the 4th Division, according to eyewitness reports. Observers described today as a “trial of strength” between the two sides. Wissam Tarif, of the human rights group Isan, said the regime is desperate to prevent the protesters taking control of a central square in Damascus . They are also keen to avoid significant demonstrations in the northern city of Aleppo. Amateur video from the city suggest there was a heavy security presence on the streets of Aleppo last night . The ministry of interior has urged people to abstain “from holding any rallies, demonstrations or sit-ins under any title without getting an official license.” Elsewhere, Nato has pledged to step-up the military pressure against Libya, after an international meeting of the Libya contact group in Rome. Nato secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen said: “Our mission will continue until the mission goals are fulfilled. We all share the desire to see this sooner rather than later. A sustained coordinated international effort, comprising both political and military means , will help bring an end to this crisis and the suffering of the Libyan people.” Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Syria Libya Bahrain Yemen Protest Bashar Al-Assad Muammar Gaddafi Matthew Weaver guardian.co.uk

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