Syrian forces storm opposition-held town

BEIRUT -- Elite Syrian troops backed by helicopters and tanks regained control yesterday of a town where police and soldiers joined forces with the protesters they were ordered to shoot -- a decisive assault from a government prepared for an all-out battle to keep power.

Troops led by the president's brother shelled Jisr al-Shughour as the gunships hovered overhead, paving the way for scores of tanks and armored personnel carriers to roll in from two directions. By early afternoon, the sounds of battle had faded. The army was in control.

Yesterday's developments, and actions by opponents of the Syrian government, marked a major departure from what had been a largely peaceful protest movement. Among them: the discovery of a mass grave filled with uniformed bodies and the increasing willingness of mutineers and outgunned residents to fight back.

President Basher Assad's response in Jisr al-Shughour, the first town to spin out of government control since the uprising began in mid-March, mirrored his father's 1980 assault there. It was a clear message to anyone contemplating defiance.

Syrians who were among thousands to flee for the nearby Turkish border said about 60 mutineers were defending the town alongside some 200 unarmed residents. Their fate was unknown late Sunday, but the government reported three deaths in the fighting -- one of its own soldiers and two unidentified men whose bodies were shown to reporters. -- AP