Government forces target Deraa, birthplace of Syria uprising

In strongest criticism so far, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says it is ‘almost certain’ Syrian regime is committing crimes against humanity.

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, demands that the Syrian regime stops using indiscriminate force against civilians caught up in fighting.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon accused the Syrian regime of potential crimes against humanity yesterday as activists reported new violence in Deraa, the city where the uprising against President Bashar Al Assad started 11 months ago.

Speaking to reporters in Vienna, Mr Ban demanded the Syrian regime stop using indiscriminate force against civilians caught up in fighting between government troops and Mr Al Assad's opponents.

"We see neighbourhoods shelled indiscriminately, hospitals used as torture centres, children as young as 10 years old chained and abused," Mr Ban said. "We see almost a certain crime against humanity."

Syrian activists said government forces attacked Deraa yesterday, killing four people, carrying out arrests and shooting randomly in the city seen as the birthplace of the uprising. Government troops also pummelled Homs for a 13th straight day with 18 people being killed in Hama province.

The push into Deraa, located near the Jordanian border 130 kilometres south of Damascus, follows the sieges on Homs and Hama and appears to be part of an effort by the regime to extinguish major pockets of dissent.

The UN General Assembly scheduled a vote yesterday on an Arab-sponsored resolution strongly condemning human-rights violations by the Syrian regime and backing an Arab League plan aimed at ending the conflict.

UN diplomats said the resolution, which already has 60 co-sponsors, was certain to be approved.

On Wednesday, Mr Al Assad ordered a February 26 referendum on a new constitution that would create a multiparty system in Syria, which has been ruled by his family dynasty for 40 years.

The Local Coordination Committees, a Syrian opposition group, yesterday urged voters to boycott the referendum and to step up efforts to oust Mr Al Assad. The United States dismissed the referendum as an empty gesture.

Also yesterday Syrian rights activist Mazen Darwish, 38, who heads the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression, was arrested in Damascus as was prominent Syrian blogger Razan Ghazzawi.

* With reporting by the Associated Press and Agence France-Presse