Iran assisting Syria with violent crack down

It has been a bloody yet efficient process so far in Syria. The White House suggested the same earlier though without any proof. A foreign diplomat now has more details.

The Guardian:

The diplomat pointed to a "significant" increase in the number of Iranian personnel in Syria since protests began in mid-March. Mass arrests in door-to-door raids, similar to those that helped to crush Iran's "green revolution" in 2009, have been stepped up in the past week.

Human rights groups suggest more than 7,000 people have been detained since the uprising began. More than 800 people are said to have died, up to 50 during last Friday's "day of defiance". Last night two unarmed demonstrators were reportedly killed during a night rally in the eastern city of Deir al-Zor.

"Tehran has upped the level of technical support and personnel support from the Iranian Republican Guard to strengthen Syria's ability to deal with protesters," the diplomat said, adding that the few hundred personnel were not involved in any physical operations. "Since the start of the uprising, the Iranian regime has been worried about losing its most important ally in the Arab world and important conduit for weapons to Hezbollah [in Lebanon]," the diplomat said.