Syrian Army to Sweep Through Hama

Echoes of Syria's most notorious massacre nearly 30 years ago resound as the army enters protest-ridden Hama.

Syrian military forces are about to enter the city of Hama to quell massive protests in the city's downtown, almost three decades after thousands of protesters were killed in one of the bloodiest chapters of Syrian history. Tanks and troops are massed along the fringes of the city of some 700,000, and appear set to enter residential neighbourhoods. The manoeuvres cast doubt on President Bashar al-Assad's claim last week that he wants to start a national dialogue with protest leaders to find a way to end the uprising that's paralyzed Syria for three monts. Sweeping through Hama surely won't help – in 1982, protests in that city against Assad's father, Rifaat al-Assad, prompted a brutal retaliation that killed as many as 30,000 civilians.