24 Apr 2011

Hague: ‘I advise all Britons to leave Syria’

The Foreign Secretary William Hague urges all British nationals in Syria to leave the country, following further unrest in which up to 100 protestors were killed by security forces.

Still image taken from video shows mourners carrying coffins in a location provided as Barzah, Syria

William Hague issued the warning after massive protests on Friday in Syria saw the highest death toll in a single day.

At least five more people were killed on Saturday during the funerals for those killed the day before.

Eyewitnesses told Channel 4 News how snipers fired from rooftops at a funeral procession in Duma as they approached a hospital, and gunmen from unmarked cars opened fire on the crowd indiscriminately.

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Hague condemned the reaction of the Syrian security forces saying they should act to calm this “dangerous situation” and that peace could only be achieved by “responding to the legitimate demands of the Syrian people”.

He also issued a warning to this Britons still there saying:

“I advise all British nationals in Syria to leave the country, unless they have a pressing need to remain. The safety of British nationals is always our primary concern.”

The Foreign Office advised people to leave the country while commercial flights were still available:

“Given the situation on the ground, it is highly unlikely that the British Embassy would be able to provide a normal consular service in the event of a further breakdown of law and order and increased violent civil disorder,” it said.

“British nationals should therefore plan accordingly.”

Around 300 Syrians are believed have to been killed since the protests against Bashar al-Assad’s rule began last month. The first protests, inspired by other uprisings across the Arab world, erupted in the city of Deraa on March 18.

At the end of March President Assad made a televised appearance during which it was widely expected that he would lift the hated emergency laws his Ba’ath party installed when they seized power 48 years ago.

Lifting the law was one of the key demands of the protestors, but Assad defied expectations and made no mention of changing it.

Further clashes and protests took place, and as Friday prayers approached this week – always a potential flashpoint for protests as thousands of men leave the mosques and meet on the streets – Assad finally relented and lifted the law on April 21.

However the decree Assad signed was seen by many as largely symbolic as other laws still allowed security forces to hold powers overt he people.

Two members of the Syrian government have since quit their posts in protest at the killings of protestors.

Secret police in Damascus have reportedly raided the homes of campaigners as the protests continue.