Fighting continues in Syrian capital as insurgency gains momentum

Tanks seen moving into east of Damascus in attempt to retake pockets of territory from opposition forces

Martin Chulov in Beirut
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 31 January 2012

"Syrian forces were battling groups of defectors in the eastern outskirts of Damascus on Tuesday as a campaign continued to reclaim pockets of the capital briefly seized by opposition groups.

The sound of artillery and gunfire could be heard throughout the afternoon as opposition forces fought street battles with loyalists who had retaken contested areas in northern Damascus on Monday.

Several dozen tanks were seen moving towards the east of the city in the early afternoon, the heart of the Bashar al-Assad regime's powerbase....

However, the president's troops continue to battle a more organised and committed opposition in the country's fourth city, Homs, where tanks and artillery were again firing intensively into the rebel-held Bab al-Amr district on Tuesday.

Residents of Homs, the frontline of an armed insurgency against the Assad family's four-decade rule, say neighbourhoods are fast being emptied of families that loyalists suspect of supporting the 10-month rebellion.

They have described dire living conditions, with poor sanitation and streets that are regularly raked by gunfire....

"There are many families homeless here and many homes destroyed," said Manhal Abo Bakr, a Hama resident and citizen journalist for the global campaigning group Avvaz. "The situation is much worse than it was last week. There has been so much killing."....."