A/HRC/18/53 Dar’a, Damascus, Aleppo, Baniyas, Jisr Al Shughour and Ma’arrat an Nu’man, and in widespread looting of homes and commercial property. II. Facts 33. At the time of writing, the mission had received more than 1,900 names and details of persons killed in the Syrian Arab Republic since mid-March 2011; all are said to be civilians.26 According to the Government, “hundreds of public order officers and personnel died and thousand others were injured” in protests during the same period (see annex V). A. Details of events since mid-March 2011 1. Dar’a Governorate 34. The city of Dar’a, which has a population of approximately 80,000 and is situated in the south-west, near the border with Jordan, witnessed the country’s first large-scale protests, triggered by the continued detention of a group of youths and children arrested in February 2011, accused of having written anti-Government slogans on walls. In midMarch, their relatives approached Syrian officials in the city to plead for their release,27 but they were both rebuffed and insulted. In response, a demonstration was held on 18 March following Friday prayers at the Omari Mosque in Dar’a Al Balad, the old part of the city. Witnesses claimed that security forces, positioned in the square facing the Mosque, sought to quell the protest by firing tear gas, then used live ammunition, killing at least four people. The following day, security forces opened fire on a large group of mourners who had taken part in the funeral procession of the four victims, killing another two. 35. In the early hours of 23 March, security forces stormed the Omari Mosque, where some 60 protestors were spending the night in tents erected in the courtyard of the Mosque.28 According to witnesses, security forces shot live ammunition in the direction of the tents, killing at least six people. The next day, several of the mourners who had taken part in the funeral procession for those killed the previous day were also shot dead. On 15 April, several people were killed and others injured when security forces shot demonstrators gathered near the Omari Mosque and the Political Security headquarters. 36. On 25 April, the army and security forces launched a large-scale military operation, putting Dar’a under siege. Tanks were stationed around the city entrances as the armed forces erected checkpoints and banned movement into and out of the city. A curfew was imposed, electricity and water supplies were cut off, and all means of communication shut down. The security forces then moved through Dar’a Al Balad, conducting house-to-house searches for wanted persons or arresting men at random. Hundreds of people were arrested. Many were routinely beaten during arrest and subsequently tortured while held in Dar’a or Damascus. The siege in its initial form lasted at least two weeks, causing acute shortages of food and water and denying the residents access to medical treatment. 26 27 28 10 This information is compiled by local coordinating committees active within the Syrian Arab Republic in documenting the names and details of victims. The mission is unable to verify independently this information. The officials included the Governor of Dar’a, Faisal Kulthoum, and the head of the local Political Security branch, “Atif Najib”. The Omari Mosque quickly became the focal point for protests, which began following noon prayers on a daily basis. It was also used as a base for a makeshift medical facility providing treatment and shelter for the injured.