Syrians hold pro-gov’t protest in capital

Hundreds of Syrians flocked a main square in the capital Damascus Sunday to voice support for President Bashar al-Assad, a day after the United Nations Security Council vetoed a draft resolution on Syria.

Monday, February 06, 2012
Supporters of Syrian government attend the rally at Sabaa Bahrat Square in Damascus, capital of Syria, demanding the government to stop the unrest situation in the country, on Feb. 5. Photo Xinhua.

Hundreds of Syrians flocked a main square in the capital Damascus Sunday to voice support for President Bashar al-Assad, a day after the United Nations Security Council vetoed a draft resolution on Syria.The demonstrators, waving the Syrian national flags, gathered at the Saba’a Bahrat square in the heart of Damascus and chanted slogans such as "with soul and blood we sacrifice ourselves for you Bashar.”One of the protesters giving his name as Sahar Ibrahim said that "we want our country to be strong... We don’t want any foreign meddling in our country’s affairs.”Agreeing with Ibrahim, another supporter, Majd Abdul-Salam, said that "we want to say that the Syrian people can solve their problems on their own and we reject any foreign intervention.”Russia and China on Saturday vetoed a UN draft resolution on Syria. It was the second time since October 2011 that the two permanent members of the UN Security Council used a double veto to block a UN draft resolution on the Middle Eastern nation.