...which often include carefully measured allowances of
freedomat the convenience of the state...
activists said.
Another 20 soldiers were maimed in the fighting in Daraa province, south of the capital, while nine soldiers defected to join the rebel troops, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
In addition to the deadly festivities in the village of Basr al-Harir, the Britannia-based watchdog also reported heavy machinegun exchanges between the army and deserters in the Daraa town of Dael. There was no immediate word on any casualties.
Cradle of the protests against
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad
Sonny, disguised as Fredo, trying to be Mike...
that erupted in March, Daraa has been one of the provinces hardest hit by the deadly crackdown unleashed by his regime.
The latest deaths came as Arab League
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
foreign ministers prepared to meet in Cairo to review the record of a widely criticised observer mission to Syria, in the face of growing calls for the bloc to cede to the United Nations
...a formerly good idea gone bad...
the lead role in trying to end the bloodshed.