The news from Homs in the past few weeks has been bleak. Syrian opposition activists have regularly issued communiques of regime military operations in the city against opposition supporters; however, the real picture has been difficult to comprehend as independent media have been banned from covering the unrest in the country. Now CNN has issued a video of Homs, secretly smuggled out of the country, that gives the outside world a view of developments in the central Syrian city. The video is accessible here.
The video portrays a city in chaos. Rubbish is strewn across the roads, indicating that public services are non-functioning, sandbag checkpoints are dotted across some rooftops and snipers are exacting a heavy toll on day to day activity. It should be noted that only some of the city is affected. One person interviewed stated that it was difficult for people to leave the area they were in to get bread and other commodities, suggesting that some sort of economic activity still exists. The neightbourhood in question is likely Bab Amr, an anti-government hotspot.
The violence in Homs has been some of the most severe in the country. Only Deraa, Hama and Idlib have experienced similarly high levels of unrest and conflict. The government has failed to end the unrest and its policy of direct confrontation has aggravated tensions between loyalists and the opposition. Even if the regime were to cease security operations in civilian areas the damage, it appears, has been done. The opposition is becoming increasingly belligerent and its demands for an end to the Assad dynasty are unlikely to end given the heavy toll already paid in blood by residents of towns like Homs.
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