Fearful Syrians stay inside, resident says

(CNN) — Syrian army and security forces surrounded the mosques of Daraa on Friday, leading residents already frightened by the presence of rooftop snipers to remain in their homes for prayer, a resident told CNN.

A group of about 500 would-be protesters who had set out after noon prayers to demonstrate against the government dispersed when army soldiers shot into the air, he said.

Since the beginning on Monday of the crackdown on such demonstrations, the deaths in the city have risen to 50 and the humanitarian situation is worsening, with neither water nor electricity available, he said.

The state-run Sana news agency said that four military men were killed and two others were kidnapped when “an armed terrorist group raided a military point in Daraa” on Friday.

The Syrian unrest began in the southern town of Daraa in March after teens were arrested for scribbling anti-government graffiti. People protested the arrests, security forces greeted the demonstrators harshly, and that spurred more rallies in Daraa and across the country.

In a statement delivered in Geneva, Switzerland, to the Human Rights Council, the U.N. deputy high commissioner for human rights, Kyung-wha Kang, said recent events have painted “a disturbing picture” of Syria.

Since mid-March, she said, that picture has included “the widespread use of live fire against protesters; the arrest, detention and disappearance of demonstrators, human rights defenders, and journalists; the torture and ill-treatment of detainees; the sharp repression of press freedoms and other means of communication; and attacks against medical personnel, facilities and patients.”

During the past week, the situation has worsened, with entire towns under siege, tanks shelling populated areas, food delivery impeded, electricity cut, transportation systems shut and reports circulating of snipers firing on people who were attempting to move the wounded or dead from public areas, she said.

Though Kang noted that military and security officers have been among the dead, “the preponderance of information emerging from Syria depicts a widespread, persistent and gross disregard for basic human rights by the Syrian military and security forces,” she said.

More than 450 people have died and about 1,800 people have been wounded, she said, citing Syrian and international human rights organizations.

The catalyst for the protests “is the deep desire of Syrians for increased respect for their fundamental human rights,” such as the right to peacefully assemble and to express themselves freely, she said.

Though the Syrian government initially said it would support those rights, lifted the state of emergency and abolished the State High Security Court, those steps were followed by “excessive use of force,” she said.

“These clearly demonstrate that violent repression of peaceful protest does not resolve the grievances of people. On the contrary, it risks creating a downward spiral of anger, violence, killings and chaos.”

She noted that “any official ordering or undertaking of attacks against the civilian population can be held criminally accountable” and that widespread or systematic attacks “may amount to crimes against humanity.”

The Syrian state-run news agency Sana said army units were trying to restore calm to the city by “hunting and confronting” extremist terrorist groups.

It accused international and Arabic-language television networks of broadcasting “poisonous propaganda” regarding the number of deaths, which they put at 70 civilians and 78 army and police.