CNN news 2011-12-29 加文本

cnn news 2011-12-29

TOM FOREMAN, cnn ANCHOR: Thanks, Ali. We begin tonight "Keeping Them Honest" with a race against time, a race between a government that says it is abiding by an agreement to end months of bloody conflict and opposition forces which say that is a flat-out lie.

Caught in the middle, hundreds of civilians pleading for the international community, including the United States, to step in and stop a massacre. Although no journalists are being allowed in, these are the videos coming out of Syria tonight, reportedly showing tanks, snipers and artillery units pounding away at neighborhoods, surrounded by thousands of troops. All this while simultaneously observers from the Arab League are arriving in Damascus to verify that President Bashar al-Assad is keeping his promise to dial back the violence, start talks with the opposition and let aid workers lend a hand.

Before showing this next video, I really do want to warn you, it is very hard to watch. You may want to turn away but it underscores the sharp contrast between the two different versions of what is going on here.

This is video claiming to show the aftermath of an artillery strike today on the city of Homs. There are more than just the one body you see here, but it's simply too gory to show. As always, we cannot independently confirm the facts of this video because the Syrian regime will not let us see for ourselves, but take a look.

These are the streets of a neighborhood. The gunfire in Homs is reportedly non-stop now. Some witnesses say it seems as if government troops are basically racing to wipe out the opposition before outside observers can arrive. The worst of all of this appears to be happening in the neighborhood called Baba Amir, just southwest of the central part of Homs. You can see as we fly in here.

It's not clear whether Arab League observers will see this tomorrow, but "Keeping Them Honest," just a couple of weeks ago, President Assad denied that there was anything to see.

PRES. BASHER AL-ASSAD, SYRIA: We don't kill our people. No government kills its people unless it's led by crazy person. For me as president, I became president because of the public support. It's impossible for anyone in this state to give order to kill.

FOREMAN: That was President Assad December 9th, talking to ABC's Barbara Walters. His own people as Anderson found out from a rare western reporter who managed to sneak into the country, his own people knew better even as he said that.

RAMITA NAVAI, REPORTER, PBS FRONTLINE: People are terrified in a lot of the towns outside Syria. The economy has ground to a standstill. There are daily violent house-to-house raids, activists and protesters, too scared to leave their houses during the day, so they live life on the run, living in safehouse, moving from safehouse to safehouse. Life is not as normal. In fact it feels like war-time era there.

ANDERSON COOPER, cnn ANCHOR: And Ramina, when you hear the Syrian leader, the dictator of Syria saying, we're not ordering the deaths of people, there are no house-to-house searches, people aren't being arrested and killed in their homes, what do you think? You've seen it for yourself.

NAVAI: Yes, I mean, on some level it's quite laughable. I was watching an Assad interview, and I was laughing at the same time, screaming at the television, because of course what's happening there is absolutely undeniable. It's all around you. You can't escape it.

FOREMAN: Since then, it appears that it's only gotten worse for the people living in Homs. That Arab League delegation we mentioned at the top arrived in Syria this evening. The members are at least expected to go to Homs tomorrow. We don't know if they will but the opposition puts little stock in the Arab League and is calling for action from the U.N. including military protection, if they can get it.