1 killed by Syrian forces in raids on region near Iraq border

Bashar al-Assad In latest developments, in the last 24 hours, the death toll in Syria is now 15 people. On Wednesday, in Homs, in  El Beida neighbourhood three people were killed, this morning when troops carried out an arrest campaign and raided some of the homes there in that neighbourhood. In Homs, when UN mission residents carried anti-Bashar and syrian gov signs written in English for them in the hope that security personel would not be able to understand it. The slogans read "stop the killing by the security forces".

In Berazoul, 2 people died of injuries when troops opened fore on people during a raid by the security forces backed by tanks, started Tuesday in Al Mayadin neighbourhood and several other neighbourhoods. While in Daraa one person died overnight in town of Nessieb (close to other border crossing which Jorden and Syria share) - shot dead by snipers in the area during a protest. And in Hama, Five people killed, three women in Al Ghab plain - agricultural area. The body of Mustafa Zahra, a man in thirties was found in Hamidiya neighbourhood on Tuesday in front of a hospital. The UN Humanitarian mission is currently visiting Daraa, where in Da'al village arrests continue after 150 people were already arrested.

Furthermore, Armoured Syrian forces killed one person and arrested dozens in raids on a tribal region near the border with Iraq on Wednesday, activists said, in their latest effort to subdue dissent against President Bashar al-Assad. A force of 20-30 tanks and other armoured vehicles entered neighbourhoods in the town of Mayadeen and the nearby village of Alburhama, before withdrawing to the outskirts, they said. "They are mainly hit-and-run raids. The military is trying to avoid reprisals from the population, which is heavily armed. So they go in quickly to arrest people, sabotaging houses of wanted activists they cannot find," an activist told Reuters by phone. (Reporting by Khaled Yacoub Oweis, Amman newsroom). Meanwhile, the Arab League will hold an urgent meeting Saturday to discuss Syria.

A woman died under torture in western Syria and more than 150 people were arrested over the past 24 hours in a Damascus suburb, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Wednesday.
The Britain-based group said that a 28-year-old woman who was arrested a week ago died under torture in the city of Khan Shehoun on Wednesday. Military and security forces arrested 27 people in the Harasta suburb of Damascus Wednesday morning, after sealing off the district and arresting 120 people the previous day, the Observatory added. The industrial district, 10km northeast of Damascus, has been the scene of protests since anti-regime protests broke out in mid-March. Rallies erupted Tuesday night in Douma and Daraya in the southwest, and around the capital in Kanaker, Zabadani, Madaya and Kisweh, witnesses said.

Al Jazeera Arabic reports that three people were killed by Syrian security forces in Biyada district in the city of Homs after an arrest campaign, Syria's local coordinating committees said.  In other news, Syrian dissidents have formed a national council to lead the opposition to Bashar al-Assad's regime, opposition members meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, said Tuesday. This appears to be one of several opposition movements and parties claiming to represent the Syrian opposition inside and outside Syria. The Associated Press reported that one politician said a national council had been formed, but another said there was no council to speak of as yet.
The creation of the council came as Libya's National Transitional Council is primed to take the reins of power from the Moammar Gadhafi regime.
"I want the Syrian regime to take note of what happened in Libya," said Syrian National Council member Louay Safi.
"Those dictators who think that they are above people and above history, (think) they can maintain repression without being called to account. That time is over now. All nations have the right to live under the rule of law and to experience democracy and free speech and freedom," Safi said.
The al-Assad regime is accused of attacking demonstrators in an effort to crush a pro-democracy movement that emerged in the aftermath of similar protests throughout North Africa and the Middle East in the so-called "Arab spring" of 2011.
In the latest unrest, the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Tuesday that Sheikh Omar Mostapha from Idleb province in Syria died from sniper-fire wounds sustained Monday, and that Syrian security forces raided villages, towns and farms in Idleb and Hama provinces. CNN was unable to independently verify the group's report.
On Tuesday, the United States and its European allies on the U.N. Security Council began circulating a draft resolution that calls for tough sanctions against al-Assad and other top Syrian officials.
"The resolution includes an arms embargo, travel ban and asset freeze on individuals and entities who are responsible for what is happening," British Deputy Ambassador Phillip Parham told reporters. "But there are things they can do now. They can stop the killing and release detainees. And allow access."
The draft resolution calls for sanctions against 23 individuals and four companies. However, Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said Tuesday "we don't think" the time was right for sanctions against Syria, and Brazil, China, India and South Africa also expressed reservations.
Security Council resolutions need at least nine votes to pass on the 15-member council with no vetoes.
The goal of the new national council to be formed by dissidents is to have 120 members -- 60 exiles and 60 activists from inside Syria. The dissidents intend to announce the names on the council in 15 days.
The group's organizers have denounced the al-Assad regime, and they are inviting representatives of all ethnic and sectarian communities to join them.
Asked by CNN whether the current events in Libya offer any lessons to the Syrian opposition, Safi said, "We are very happy to see the Libyan people able to achieve the freedom they want."
However, Safi said, the group doesn't want Syria to go the same way as Libya in its effort to build a democracy, a reference to the civil warfare raging in the North African country.
"We are insisting on peaceful protests, and hope the Syrian people will adopt this approach," Safi said.
The movement wants to establish a democratic system but stressed the need to be independent of foreign interference.
The UN Human Rights Council has ordered an investigation into violations reportedly committed by Syrian security forces during the crackdown on dissent.
It passed a resolution to "urgently dispatch an independent international commission of inquiry" and demanded an end to the violence against protesters.
EU countries and the US say they have prepared a draft resolution calling for UN sanctions against the government. The draft resolution drawn up at the UN in New York calls for targeted sanctions against President Assad and 22 members of his ruling circle, as well as Syria's General Intelligence Directorate.
But Russia, a member of the UN Security Council and a staunch ally of President Assad, says it doesn't see the need to go beyond a Council statement issued earlier this month, which condemned the violence in Syria
Further UN action At the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva earlier in the day, there were 33 votes in favour of the resolution on Syria, four against - reportedly including China, Russia and Cuba - and nine abstentions.
Before the vote, Syria's UN ambassador in Geneva, Faysal Khabbaz Hamoui, said the resolution was unbalanced.
"This once again confirms that there is a determination to politically condemn Syria and pass over any proposal for opening and reform that exists in this country," he said.
The emergency session had the backing even of Syria's neighbours such as Jordan and Saudi Arabia, says the BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva.
US ambassador Susan Rice said the decision to investigate alleged human rights abuses showed the "chorus of international condemnation against the Syrian regime" had grown louder and more unified.
But calls by the US and UK for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down irritated some member states; in the end, Russia and China voted against the resolution, calling it one-sided and over politicised, our correspondent says.
The European Union on Tuesday widened its sanctions against Syria, adding 15 people and five institutions to those already targeted.
'Your turn, Bashar' The UN says it has a humanitarian mission in Syria in order "to assess such needs as food and medicine".
The mission visited the central city of Homs on Monday, but was advised to leave for security reasons when protests started.
Rights activists said three people were killed when security personnel and militia opened fire on crowds who had gathered to welcome the UN team.
Inspired by recent events in Libya, many protesters chanted: "Gaddafi is gone, it's your turn Bashar."
Reuters reported that local pro-democracy activists has said security forces raided countryside near Hama, killing at least five people, as the UN team toured Syria.
Surprise visit
Meanwhile, Robert Ford, the US ambassador to Syria, made a surprise visit to the southern town of Jassem, where activists say Syrian forces in May killed at least 12 people in response to unrest.
The spokeswoman said Mr Ford had spoken to a number of residents, adding: "His message back to them was that we stand with them and that we admire the fact that their action has been completely peaceful."
The EU started work on a proposal to bar Syrian crude oil and that will be under discussion through the week, said Michael Mann, spokesman for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton. Last week, the EU's political and security committee proposed an embargo and it will be examined by a committee of experts. British oil firm Gulfsands Petroleum Plc said it is compliant with current sanctions against Syria, a country that accounts for about 90 per cent of the group's production.
Shares in Gulfsands slumped 19 per cent on Monday on worries about the impact of potential sanctions.
"The US and EU have imposed a number of sanctions against Syria and various named individuals and organisations," the company said on Wednesday.
"Gulfsands is fully compliant with all applicable sanctions and is committed to continuing compliance with any sanctions that may apply from time to time," reported Reuters.
According to the UN, more than 2,200 civilians have been killed since protests against Assad started in mid-March.