Reports are coming out of Syria that soldiers are refusing to fire on protesters. If true, this could be signs in the cracks of the Bashar Assad regime. That regime is lead by Alawites who are just 15% of the population. The Army and population is mostly Sunni, who are 75%. Clearly if the Army joins the population, the Assad regime is toast.
Syrian soldiers have been shot by security forces after refusing to fire on protesters, witnesses said, as a crackdown on anti-government demonstrations intensified.
Witnesses told al-Jazeera and the BBC that some soldiers had refused to shoot after the army moved into Banias in the wake of intense protests on Friday.
Human rights monitors named Mourad Hejjo, a conscript from Madaya village, as one of those shot by security snipers. “His family and town are saying he refused to shoot at his people,” said Wassim Tarif, a local human rights monitor.
When a regime is controlled by a minority and the Army is made of the majority, there could be trouble. If the majority Sunni Army turns on Assad, he will be toast.
Tags: Bashar Assad, Syrian Army
