DAMASCUS - According to human rights activists, the syrian government's crackdown has left more than 1,400 civilians dead since mid-March. Thousands more have been jailed.
The world is wondering, how and why would an entire army turn on its own people. How do soldiers have the nerve to open fire on women, children and young men their age?
This situation is hard to understand, and even hard to examine. Media reports are based on unverified testimonies, and the regime itself does not even admit to violence against civilians.
By now, everybody knows that the syrian regime has been saying "armed terrorists" are behind the unrest. While we cannot prove this theory wrong, all the civilians that have been reporting events on social networks have been denying such claims.
Defecting soldiers also claim they were told to fire at will on these armed gangs, which were nowhere to be found.
But the number of defecting soldiers remains minimal in contrast with the size of the syrian army.
Recent reports have suggested soldiers are threatened unless they do as they are told. Their superiors will not hesitate to shoot them should they refuse to shoot unarmed civilians.
However, numerous videos have emerged showing a whole syrian unit abusing unarmed civilians as they arrest them. These soldiers do not appear to be threatened and seem to be enjoying what they are doing. Why?
Syrian soldiers have a reputation to be ruthless and vicious, but in this case could this be said about 330.000 of them?
Wouldn't they be, at one point, maybe, pointing a gun towards a relative?
Haven't they realised, several month after the start of the uprising, that the story of the "armed gangs" just might not be true?
What do you tweepers have to say?
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