Opposition activists upload online video showing protesters setting fire to Iranian, Hezbollah flags, chanting: 'Not Iran, not Hezbollah, we want a president afraid of Allah'

Published: 06.15.11

VIDEO - An online video uploaded by Syrian opposition activists shows protestors setting fire to Iranian and Hezbollah flags during a demonstration held east of Damascus on Tuesday.

"Not Iran and not Hezbollah, we want a president who's afraid of Allah," the protesters shouted.

During the past few days, Syrian opposition accused the Islamic Republic and the Shiite organization of helping suppress demonstrations in the country. They even uploaded videos to the internet showing them allegedly fighting off Iranian combatants in Syria.



'Snipers standing on rooftops'
Meanwhile, in another video uploaded to Youtube, Hussein Harmouche, a senior Syrian officer who deserted and fled to Turkey last week, claimed there are other Syrian soldiers who wish to defect but fear for their lives and for the lives of their families.




Harmouche told AFP on Tuesday he hopes his actions will encourage other officers to desert the Syrian army. "Some soldiers have called me and with god's help they'll escape soon, "he said.

According to Harmouche, a Syrian intelligence officer was ordered to kill citizens, and after refusing to do so his wife was raped.



"I've seen with my own eyes snipers standing on rooftops, Iranian and Hezbollah snipers shooting at the crowd," Harmouche recalled.

Another video shows soldiers riding a Syrian military vehicle, joining the demonstrators and chanting: "The people and the army are one."




The protest was held in the Deir ez Zor area in eastern Syria on Monday, according to the video.



In an announcement issued earlier this week by Hezbollah, the terror group denied any reports of the organization's involvement in the crackdown in Syria.

"Hezbollah denies these rumors. It's incitement," the group said. "All of those officials spreading the rumors are not credible and we still find ourselves having to deny them because of the multitude of lies, because we fear good people will believe them. We're sure Syria can stand the test of time with cleverness and determination."






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