Firas Al-Ali, Baladi News, Al-Suwayda
Young people of Al-Suwayda governorate staged several peaceful sit-ins within "You destroyed us" campaign which was launched last April and faced the first reaction by Syrian regime in its last sit-in.
A sit-in was staged in front of "MTN" center in the city last Thursday after calls by activists, but no sooner had they started than the regime's thugs began firing in the air in order to strike fear into the protesters and disperse their sit-in.
The reason behind the sit-in came as a protest against the soaring prices and economic malaise which affected all aspects of life in the city and at the same time in solidarity with all the Syrian cities and in affirmation on the unity of the Syrian people. However, the regime forces reacted by firing live bullets for the first time since the beginning of the campaign.
"Firing live bullets to disperse the demonstrators led to a state of security disorder and confusion that dominated the city", according to the activist Noura Al-Basha.
"Those who fired bullets in the air to disperse a demonstration are sending a message to the young people of Al-Suwayda; those who destroyed the Syrian cities will pay no heed to the city of Al-Suwayda, but this will not discourage the youth of the city from realizing their demands", the activist added.
Observers believe that Wafiq Nasser, head of the military security branch in the southern region, is following in Assad's cousin (Atif Najib) footsteps who sparked off revolution in Daraa to reach then the rest of the Syrian cities.
They also believe that using live bullets by Wafiq Nasser and his ilk to disperse the sit-in is just the tip of the iceberg, pointing out that he didn't learn from the lesson of Atif Najib.
The campaign activities included a stand in solidarity with the Syrian cities and a condemnation to the international silence towards the crimes committed against the civilians in Syria, the most prominent of which was the candles sit-in for the city of Aleppo in late April.
It's noteworthy that Al-Suwayda has witnessed many demonstrations and protests at the time the Syrian regime tried to hush up the peaceful movement of the city.