protest in syria is brutally repressed by security forces. demonstrators are shot, beaten, and killed. in the absence of free media, such videos made by the protesters themselves are the only evidence of what the syrians are going through. but confirmed the authenticity is difficult, and reports are contradicted by the syrian government and its own media. syrian state television broadcasts its view as well, from reports of brutal demonstrators to extensive footage of dead soldiers. it shows detained opposition member is giving concessions. the government says the unrest is caused by foreign powers that want to destabilize the country. many syrians did not know which side to believe. opposition supporters are having difficulty telling their stories. many have fled abroad. this person says his city is pure hell. two weeks ago he escaped to be rude, but he believed -- he escaped to be rude, but he believes that syrian intelligence agencies are there as well. >> they bt andortured at 10 days in jail. they arrested 4000 people, except for 500 peop

syria is an important toehold in the region. damascus is a vital ally against israel along with lebanon in gaza. iran is supporting a sock in his fight against his own people with weapons and know-how. -- iran's supporting president assad in his fight against his own people. earliethis month, tens of thousands of people took par in a demonstrators tossed in a demonstration, the largest number since it began. -- tens of thousands of people took part in a demonstration, the largest number since it began. >> syria has been wracked by military coups. parliamentary institutions have been weak. when the father of bashar al- assad gave up power -- seized power, pro-democracy activists began leaving the country in droves. many of them found asylum in britain which is now home to a large exile community of syrians would like to see their home country become a democracy. what's down with the -- >> down with the assad regime is the chant outside of the syrian embassy. >> they will do anything to shut our mouths. and we don't have weapons.

that is also true of syria's richest man. he is the president's cousin and has become a billionaire on under the regime and a symbol of corruption. he has immense influence on business in syria and has no interest in change. >> it could be hard for assad to push through reforms like these if reform is what the president wants. >> so is he really pulling the strings in syria now? earlier, we talk about that with someone from the german institute for international and security affairs. >> there is a lot of speculation about what exactly happens behind closed doors. i do not really think the question is really that relevant. the regime seems to be acting with one mind, one well, and one strategy. who exactly might be pushing for a harder line and will for a softer line inside does not really matter to us and to the people who have to endure the results. >> how likely is it that the syrian regime will open itself up to democratic reforms? >> i did not think it is likely at all. this is a regime built from the top down, and distri

>> they say they have good relations with syria. they do not need that again, the catastrophe that happened when the kurds came in and all the people died and turkey was stuck with the kurdish fighters for decades to come. they were trying to keep things stable in syria. they were supporting the regime and calling for reforms, but not calling for the regime to step down alike in egypt and elsewhere. we have ben seeing a lot of frustration on the turkish part. they are just not going anywhere. last week, a member of the turkish parliament said that they have been talking to the opposition. the town of voice is becoming more frustrated towards the syrians. we are seeing a shift happened. >> steve is here to tell us about the inflation watchers of europe. >> it seems that interest rates might be heading higher. the ecb left rates unchanged on thursday. they ve been talng about the greek debt crisis. >> ecb president rejected a proposal by the german finance minister to get private bondholders to swap current funds for bonds with more m

the president of syria has once again promised reform. bashir al-assad told the country on monday that changes will come within months, but he also blamed saboteurs for the under arrest, and he vowed not to deal with a gunman. >> for president bashir al- assad, the unrest in syria is the work of a small group of extremists. it is not the first timehe president has blamed this on saboteurs, as they suffer through the most serious challenge to the leadership in nearly 40 years. >> there can be no political settlement with those who use guns and kill people. we want a political settlement, and we hope that the army will be able to return to its barracks as quickly as possible. >> assad promised to look into broadening amnesty for his political opponents. he also announced that parliamentary elections originally scheduled for last month will now be held in august. president asssad's supporters were jubilant, but soon after, rallies were reported in damascus. for many in the opposition movement, the president's speech offered too little, too l

more protests and more deaths in syria, as security forces again opened fire on demonstrators. can this man prevent disaster in greece? a last-gasp grasp. and saudi women get behind the wheel in a bid for the right to drive. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> human rights activists say at least 12 people are dead ar syrian security forces opened fire on protesters. this as several governments around the world try to figure out how to up the diplomatic pressure. france wants suffer sanctions against the regime, and the u.s. has been trying to persuade russia to back a u.n. security council rest luge on the issue. the eants government demonstrations continue -- anti-government demonstrations continue. >> they have defied the government crackdown and rallied around cities in syria. reports posted online by members of the opposition say soldiers in tanks and helicopters opened fire on civilians, leaving at least 16 people dead. those reports could not be independently verified. the syrian military says it now has taken control of cities in the nort

the situation in syria is getting so severe that the top people at the u.n. charged with preventing genocide are voicing concer they point to police and military attacks on unarmed civilians, mass detention, and reports of people disappearing. human-rights groups estimate 10,000 people have been taken by force since protests began in march. we have this report on the fate of one of those detainees. >> these young women are said to be protesters in the city of homs. they are carrying banners demanding an end to the killings, and a picture of a young syrian boy. footage from the internet's -- purports to show -- footage from the internet purports to show his violent and after protesting. state tv showewehis father praising the president. they said the boy's body was handed over to his parents weeks after he died. a u.n. spokesman pledged to find out what had been done. >> we have been deeply med and ashad abt what hapned t that boy. i have no idea why anybody would brutalize a young boy like that. >> but the name is one among many. detentions are widespread, li

the city in syria's northwest was the scene of heavy fighting. and troops loyal to bashar al-asaad. and there are images of a mass grave, with government forces killed by rebels. tehy saihey said they were killd for not opening fire on civilians. thousands have fled to nearby turkey. and anti-governemnt protesters are congradulating the turkish prime minister, and renewed their calls for the overthrow of the regime. they will keep their borders open to syrians looking for safety. 1300 have benen killed. the -- prime minister has said their would be 30 ministers, connected to the hezbollah goverment. says it will represent all lebanese. they have been without a president after kariri was overthrown. we will look at the human right s situation later in this half hour. silvio bullous toberlusconi hasd a trial immunity for goverment officials. he had urged a boycott. turnout is believed to be 57%. >> anti-nuclear activists celebrated the results, cluding having italy being a nuclear-free country. >> the only possibility -- >> this puts an end to berlusconi's plan to restart the nuclear

worth a biioeusin a move aimed at creating jobs and help get the greek economy back on its feet >> in syria, more reports of security forces firing on pro democracy protesters after friday prayers. activists say more than a dozen people have been killed. theyrn army has also been raiding villages along the turkish border as part of its crackdown. thousands of refugees have osd toury to escape the bloodshed. >> protesters flee as security forces fire tear gas and live ammunition. syrians across the country turned out in large numbers after friday prayers. unverified video shows violence in several locations. activists say at least 15 people were killed. syrian television is presenting other picture, free from the crackdown on anti-government protests. it's called upon residents to rern to their homes saying the army restored stability from armed terrorist gangs. the town has been a flashpoint of pro democracy demotrations. >> the hospital has resumed service and all citizens are welcome to seek treatment. we have people from the surrounding villages coming for medical attention. >> sirans ar

elsewhere in syria, anti- ackermann protests reportedly continue. some images -- anti-government protests reportedly continue. some images show demonstrations. the messages on these boys' chests read, "stop the army" and "there are no gangs." turkey has set up camps for refugees and kept its borders open. >> we share a common destiny with the syrian people. there is no way we will close the border. we will not stop posting them, even if the number reaches 10,000 -- hosting them, even if the number reaches 10,000. beyond that, could become an international problem. -- it could become an international problem. >> iran has successfully placed an imaging satellite into orbit. state television said that the satellite was fully designed and built by iranian scientists. the rocket carried a 15-kg satellite into orbit, at 260 kilometers above the earth. iran launched its first satellite in 2009. united states and italy have concerns that the technology could be used to deploy nuclear weapons. tehran has denied that its space program has military aims. they

was this a massacre in syria? state television says 120 security troops were killed over the weekend in the northwest. the government has reportedly sent a convoy of military tickles. there is no way of knowing what is happening in the town now. we have this report. >> state television broadcast pictures of what it said are over 100 soldiers and police killed in an attack on sunday. the incident took place near the syrian border with turkey. syrian officials say armed gangs attacked security forces. people said to be residents of the town were shown on state television. it journalist banned from syria, it is impossible to verify whether the official account is true. the opposition tells a different story. this video shows anti-government protests probably last friday. soldiers shot comrades who refused to open fire on civilians. other versions claimed that mutinous soldiers attacked loyalist forces. this is the first time the discipline in the security forces might be weakening. >> we will deal with the situation

. >> we turn our attention to syria. the u.s. has condemned what it calls the syrian government's outrageous use of violence against the opposition and the u.n. secretary general is urging bashar al-assad to stop the violence. syrian troops have killed 1300 civilians and the three months old popular uprising. so far, the crackdown is not appear to have silenced anti regime protesters. the crowd chants, "go away, we don't like you." for weeks, they have demanded the departure of the syrian president. this was shot on wednesday in damascus suburb but it cannot be verified. the regime will not allow foreign journalists into the country. demonstrators hold up signs in support of deserting soldiers. there have been numerous reports of troops refusing orders to use violence against protesters. in northwestern syria, the army is reported to be chasing down opposition activists with brute force. thousands of refugees are on the run. many have already arrived in turkey. >> i am here at the border. none of us can go back now. we are in a s

groups and northern syria are also joininghe protest. monica is here to talk about the green light for greece. >> auditors from the imf, at the e.u., and european central bank agreed athens should a group receive -- should receive the next installment of their bailout, but they also want more caps on public spending from the debt stricken country. >> the chairman of the euro group and the greek prime minister or relieved to hear that athens had qualified for a second bailout. >> it is obvious that there will be no exit from greece from the area. greece will be able to fully honor its obligations. >> auditors from the imf, the eu and the ecb give a positive assessment of their efforts to rein in public spending. that paves the way for athens to receive the next installment of 12 billion euros in bailout funds. fthe money will come from the 10 billion euro fund that was set up for that purpose a year ago. there are also increasing signs greece can expect additional financial support of up to 65 billion euros. but the cash injection comes w

. >> syria oppose the president has declared amnesty for political prisoners serve -- political prisoners. they show the latest demonstrations. activists have dismissed it as too little too late. it is a major legal setback for the russian oil tycoon. it is an unexpected victory. he was jailed back in 2005 on tax evasion. >> he is behind bars. in 2003, the zero oil billionaire was arrested and went on trial and was found guilty. many of observed the the kremlin not targeted him because of his political activities. they believe they wanted to neutralize a potential presidential rival. his company was broken up have sold off by the state. it is a symbol of the ruthless hold on power. and i see him as the most famous victim of the authoritarian regime. he refuses to maintain his innocence. they say he violent -- he violated his rights. >> russian police have accused a man. the suspect was arrested at his parents' house in chechnya according to his lawyer. he has been on the run for several years. she has been an outspoken critic against insurgents. we're going to switch gears. my colleague a

. >> the reports coming out of syria suggest that the regime there is willing to shoot anybody who dares to protest. 22 protesters were reportedly shot on friday, and others are fleeing to escape the military crackdown. this has been described as savagery. -- >> down with asaad is what the protesters are setting in damascus. people also to the streets to the north of the country, and their outrage is growing by the day. these images are from the northern regions. the people there refuse to be intimidated. the footage is uploaded to the internet through web sites for the opposition movement. independent reporting is not possible at the moment. in the far northwest, the streets are empty and many of the 50,000 residents have fled. they are afraid that there will be a hard crack down on the civilian populations. more and more people are trying to escape across the border, and they are shocked by what is happening. -- >> he is killing his own people to stay in power and this is sheer cruelty. >> 3000 have found refuge here, and more are coming every day. many of them tell about the atrocitie

syria more and more is acting like an iranian surrogate. given all the difficulties of intervening in syria and the lack of political support, i do not see that feasible. host:dr. munoz has a ph.d. from stanford university and spent 12 years with the cia. both have jobs to to have at the cia? >> i started out as an analyst. then i got frustrated with it and want to be an operations officer. so then i switched to directorates and i joined the do. i spent four years in the d.i,. director of intelligence, and about 25 years, i have been the director of operations back on what kind of work did you do? host: can you tell us? guest: i have been officially approved or resume. when you retire over, you can say you're at the cia only if you have any progress the night. i can say it was a case of a cert. it was -- it is my resume. spot, develop, recruit foreign assets are your intelligence providers. i did covert action programs in latin america, the middle east, and north africa. host: graham, n.c., a democrat. are you with us? we have to turn down

one other point i want to make is on syria. one thing that is interesting in these revolutions is that the public's in these regions are no longer differentiating between pro-u.s., anti-u.s., tough on israel, easy on israel -- they just feel these regimes need change. when i was in power square -- tahrir square, one of the signs tahrir square, one of the signs had a picture of every major power. they did not differentiate on the basis of ideology. syria had credentials in the country of holding talks with israel, but that does not seem to be protecting them, certainly with -- not with the public. it is. the interesting to watch next few weeks have the story and -- it is going to be interesting to watch in the next few weeks how the story unfolds. the violence from the security services has been fascinating. a lot of people said, how much -- and the public have? we have seen it in libya, misrata, yemen. people are still standing firm. this is a fascinating wave that is sweeping our world. the barrier of fear has been broken. peo

we are not spending it in syria. what is the policy here in terms of the expenditure of u.s. dollars in very un-democratic places? libya has a lot of loyal. if one puts up a map of libya, all i say is a good exercise for teachers around the country is defined with the oil wells are and which countries interest have companies there, agreements with the government of libya. libya is another big oil well. where were the chinese? where are the canadians? where are the italians? where are the americans? if you really look through the lens of oil, a whole different world opens to you. arthur a lot of bad leaders on the african continent? yes. are the hopes of democracy there? yes. look at egypt, but what do we have? do we have a democratic country? no. the future is far from certain. across the region, we have to be very judicious about our military involvement. i give the president a lot of credit for involving nato and other countries. it looks like a very western operation. if you look the general in charge, if you look at the engagement of the italians for which we are very gra

jane said how about two minutes on syria, steve? let's focus on the situation in sir why. we heard from the sir i don't know president in a speech tell violationed and is -- televised. how long can he stay on? guest: every time there is a crisis in a country somewhere around the world there is this natural and in many ways good american impulse to try to help. but there is a problem. in every case we don't know anything about the countries and we stumble into doing things and after one or two years of making mistakes we say my heavens we didn't know anything about that country. syria is a very complicated place. it is ruled by a dictatorship of a shaoe shiite minority. the sunnis in that country, we don't know if they would be friendly or not friendly to american interests. we would like to see something worked out peacefully. we can't get involved in it. up another point. we have supposedly went into libya for humanitarian reasons, to save lives. now, that morphed into getting rid of gaddafi. but if our interest is humanitarian why not do something about the ivory coast,

for few months we were saying ashir assad would have reforms in syria, but give me a break. this man has done nothing for forms. for capitol hill and others to question the strategy does not mean we are isolationist, it means we are taking a look at what we would like to see as strategy in the middle east and we're not seeing a strategy -- a long-term strategy to fight radical jihadist s. to ask the president to be clearer on articulating our long-term strategy for defeating the radical derides, for bringing about reform change in the middle east, that is not isolationist. it is appropriate. host: should gaddafi be removed? guest: i think you have no option at this point in time but to remove him. host: we have not gone in there, but we should remove tampa? guest: i think the president has to make a more compelling case for why we did go in. now that you have wounded gaddafi, the worst thing for europe and the libya and america is that he would stay in power. host: how does nato do that? guest: it is very embarrassing. we are 100 days or more in this campaign and you are in

syria expands campaign to crush dissent. i want to get your reaction to secretary gate's stain most countries like to each other. we will start with an independent and montana. tom, you are on the line. caller: my feeling is not only most governments like to each other, most government, including our government, on occasion like to our -- to their own people. we have had all kinds of stories about why the war in iraq started. and it goes on and on. but i think it is just something we have to learn to live with. i will hang up. host: the second part of the statement secretary gates made is that is the way business is done. you have a reaction to that? caller: well, i guess that is what our intelligence agencies are supposedly for, to determine whether they are lying to us or not. i believe that probably is the way business is done, unfortunately. host: bethesda, maryland. democrat. caller: how are you? i say, yes, governments like to one another. i know we lied to several governments. we lied to the government of -- when we o

they're killing their own people in yemen, in syria, in iran, and the ivory coast. what about these sudan? that is probably one of the greatest human tragedies in the recent era and we were not going in there. why libya all of a sudden? because they have oil? we have oil here in the u.s. and we're not drilling. if it is about oil, let's get our own oil out of the ground. let's not worry about attacking libya and other countries. it is not isolation. we can engage diplomatically, weakening gauge economically, but that does not mean that we have to be putting boots on the ground and engaging our military forces every time there is a civil war in some countries around the world, unless the direct interest of the analysis are threatened. host: us talk about housing policy and fannie and freddie policy and fannie and freddie for you have a proposal to eliminate them, but put in place something very similar. guest: it is not very similar. there are many significant differences. this is a housing finance reform bill that has been introduced of bipartisan bill myself and je

in syria, the british prime minister speaking earlier in the house of commons said britain and france will offer a resolution at the united nations condemning the crackdown in syria, adding that it will be focused on demanding accountability and humanitarian action. he went on to say if anyone votes against it or try to veto it, that should be on their conscience. an update from germany's national disease control center, the report that another person has died from the e. coli infection, raising the death toll to 24 in germany and one in sweden. the number of reported cases is up by more than 300 from the previous day as the number of sick people increases. those are some of the latest headlines on c-span radio. >> each year, congress tries to pass bills. you could follow their progress with the c-span possessed of a comprehensive resources. congressional chronicle at c- span.org/congress. the c-span networks. we provide coverage of politics, public affairs, nonfiction books, and american history. find our content any time through c-span's video library. we take season on the road wit

the end of the new york times says there is a new move to condemn syria. britain and france will condemn the syrian government for using force against its own civilians but would avoid a call for military action or any sanction against the government. in one more quick thing in case he mixed it. -- in case you missed it. debit card fees story. the headline says senate okays cap on devotees. the senate cited with retailers over bankers on wednesday, voting to let the fed move forward with a plan to cap this white piece that financial institutions charge. it is still unclear what impact this will have on consumers. they got 54 votes for an amendment to delay the reorganization of these fees. last couple of calls on preparing. nancy, republican from north carolina. caller: i just want to say this may be -- must be democratic morning, because everything they say about the republicans as applying to them. -- is applying to them. and there is a song by don henry called dirty laundry. and everything they say -- i other places,rom and everything they say is applie

i recently changed my mind, because of a situation with a 13 year old boy in syria. i have a 5-year-old boy. i cannot imagine going outside fighting for my freedom and being taken down the way these people have been taken down. we initially thought to this country, we had to fight. we had to make it so that we could get our freedom away from the united kingdom and things of that natioure. i was initially against them and being libya. many middle eastern countries do not take the united states seriously, because we are spread so thin. look at the way we are being treated by our own government right now. it is not as bad as the middle east. republicans are trying to take us back to the 1960's. they are trying to strip away our rights so that we will have to go on the streets and fight for what we deserve. we should not turn a blind eye to what we see going on over there. when you do not speak up against something, that means you condone it. host: the vote on the rationale, acceptable to you or not? caller: to be honest with you, the republicans and do things -- it is l

we just come back and life goes on and we look into our next war with syria. host: thank you for your call on twitter -- back to the "los angeles times." here is a bit more, the main military effort in afghanistan is expected to shift over the next year from helmont province in the south where u.s. forces have achieved fragile security gains, to the east, where the taliban insurgency remains potent. this strategy is unlikely to satisfy some critics. new york is next. this is mark, a democrat there. caller: i have been listening to all of the comments concerning this war and troop withdrawals in afghanistan. i think we have already accomplished what we went there for, and that was to get bin laden. what are we still doing there? those people were born to fight and died. you cannot change it. that is their way of life. host: are you calling for gradual withdrawal or do you want them all out soon? caller: i like all of the troops out. it is not going to stop. it will never stop. that is the people's way of life. leave them alone. they have had a tin years to buil

i am not clear about syria. i think both of those countries are majority shia. it seemed the united states is supporting more dictatorial type governments because it supposedly is in american interests, particularly in saudi arabia. that is a country where women cannot even drive. are there really close ties with iran and yemen? -- bahrain and yemen? united states should stop being hypocritical and start supporting democracy. guest: the first issue is about the drone strikes. this story came out recently. the first one took place in 2002. it killed the head of a credit in yemen -- had al qaeda in yemen. we have been doing this for a long time. as the yemeni government has not been going after a private -- al qaeda, the operation space has gotten bigger. there are certain targets the americans are focused on. there is not a military solution to dealing with this. we cannot kill our way out of this problem. there is the potential for real unintended consequences that follow from doing this by remote control. the last big drums strike was last year. it killed in tr

people being slaughtered and killed, what is it that determines the use of force in libya obverses syria? the american people want to understand better what our foreign policy principles are and how they are acted out and played out in terms of policy. i prefer a boat consistent foreign policy that sends the message throughout the world -- i prefer a more consistent foreign-policy that sends the message throughout the world what we stand for. host: delaware, ed, on our independent line. caller: after serving this country for 33 years, i have become a hardened independent. i know paul ryan has put something out on medicare. all i want to do is see a counter. i need to see the democrats put something in writing that i can debate. they have not even put out a budget in the house in the set -- in the house and the senate in two years. how can i judge what their side is when i do not see anything in writing? we have to do something. this country is sinking quickly. guest: you have seen the democrats put forth a budget that's balanced, that reflects our priorities, and that really begins to pr

in the middle east coming over to speak to us while other dictators seemed to get a free ride like syria, iran, -- did the administration ever come to congress to get approval for the actions in libya? host: there is going to be a vote on that topic today. guest: the answer was the president has, after 60 days, made a request for approval to congress, and that is one of the things that is generating this activity right now. i think he will find congress doing what is appropriate to do. the problem is, saying, mr. president, we have not given you our approval, but we want to give you a reasonable time to make your case. please give us this information so congress can look at it and see whether or not the analysis is proper so we can determine whether to get that approval or not. at the end of the 14 days, if they have looked at the intermission and determined they should not be in there, they should have a resolution of some sort that says we do not approve of your actions in libya. at this particular point in time, mike, we do not have that information to make that decision. host: the la