Beirut (dpa) – Syrian troops were out in force in and around the capital, Damascus, where at least nine more people were reported killed Monday following overnight clashes between the army and defectors, opposition activists and witnesses said. “Troops killed nine people since Monday morning and arrested more than 45 people as they were carrying out a combing operation in the area of (the) Damascus suburbs,” a Damascus-based activist, who goes by the name of Ayman Idlibi, told dpa. A resident of central Damascus, meanwhile told dpa by phone: “We saw soldiers and police deploying around main squares in the capital since the early hours of the morning, and throughout the night we could hear the sound of heavy explosions.” Opposition activists in Damascus said soldiers were deployed near the road leading to Damascus International Airport, which they said was briefly blocked after members of the country's intelligence service defected to the opposition. Activists said the army took control of the city's eastern suburbs following fierce clashes late Sunday with army defectors who belong to an opposition group known as the Free Syrian Army. The defectors eventually withdrew from the area. The Free Syrian Army on Monday confirmed that its forces had for some hours held control of the district of al-Ghotta, less than eight kilometers from the heart of the Damascus, but said they were forced to retreat. According to United Nations estimates, more that 5,400 have killed since the uprising erupted against the Syrian regime in mid-March. Arab League representatives plan to present a peace plan for Syria to the UN later Monday. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/dyWXI Tags: Damascus, Protests, Violence Section: Latest News, Syria
