Syria crackdown but governments silent over Arabs angry

Aug 1 (Reuters) - Arabs reacted strongly on Monday to the deaths of dozens of Syrians in Hama at the hands of the Syrian army but most Arab governments kept silent, apparently fearing the power of protest movements that have spread throughout the region this year.

"The world is watching the slaughterhouse in Syria. Shame on us," Egyptian presidential candidate Mohamed ElBaradei said in a well-received message on social media site Twitter on Sunday. "The peace of God be upon Syria's martyrs. Shame on every Arab and every human being," he also wrote in Arabic.

Though there was an outpouring of anger on social media among activists, immediate reaction was muted on the streets on the first day of the fasting month of Ramadan.

"What happened yesterday in Syria is terrifying. If the international community is silent then many of the Arab rulers could commit similar massacres," said Jalal Shujja, a Yemeni activist at Change Square where activists have been demanding an end to President Ali Abdullah Saleh's rule since January.

Hamdeen Sabahi, an Egyptian opposition politician who also intends to run for president, was visibly upset when he was informed of the Hama deaths during a Reuters interview.

"There is no power or might but in God," he muttered, then sat for several minutes in awkward silence.

Though activists have been inspired by protests in other Arab countries, they have been locked in their own battles.

Around 200 people staged a demonstration outside the Syrian embassy in Cairo on Sunday night, but Egyptian activists called for a major show of protest for Monday night.

"I am certain that Assad will not have an easy exit and could end up killing half of his people before he agrees to give up powers but he will lose eventually as the people always win," said Gamal Eid, head of the Cairo-based Arabic Network for Human Rights Information.

CONFLICTED GULF RULERS

In the Gulf Arab region, where Saudi Arabia has led what analysts have called a "counter-revolution" to bolster allies against protests, media reflected popular revulsion of Assad's attempt to crush opposition but seemed to contrast that with the paternalistic rule of the Gulf ruling dynasties.

In Saudi newspapers, headlines about Syria ran next to picture of King Abdullah and his Ramadan speech calling for Muslims to build "sympathetic, tolerant societies" in which "the wronged forgive those who have wronged them".

Saudi Arabia has had bad relations with Assad because of his close ties to Iran and the Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah, but analysts say the Saudi royal family, which managed to deter mass protests at home, is conflicted over the possibility of seeing another Arab ruler fall.

Kuwaiti authorities have suspended several clerics who criticised Assad in Friday prayer sermons, while Kuwaiti Islamists said this week they will mobilise in media and mosques during Ramadan against Assad's government.

In the United Arab Emirates daily al-Ittihad, the Hama story came below headlines announcing a round of massive housing loans. Having put five people on trial for attempting to mobilise for democratic reforms, the UAE has not allowed a repeat of protests at the Syrian consulate in Dubai in March.

"Arab leaders are just not willing to stand up to the Assad regime and potentially damage the relationship. They don't know if he'll stay in power and there's a chance he will," said Shadi Hamid of the Doha Brookings Center.

He added: "We may possibly see the worst massacre of the Arab Spring right now -- I think we're on the verge of that."

In Morocco, newspapers played down the number of Syrian deaths. King Mohammed has so far outmanoeuvred democracy protesters with a successful referendum on a new constitution that stops far short of making him a figurehead in a constitutional monarchy, maintaining his sweeping powers.

"Arab governments are not reacting because they are concerned that the unrest will spread to other Arab states," said Hilal Khashan, a politics professor in Beirut. "I don't think that continued violence (during Ramadan) will have any official reaction from the rest of the Arab World," he said.

End to Street Protests of Yemen's Ailing President Calls

SANAA, Yemen –  Yemen's ailing President Ali Abdullah Saleh called Sunday for an end to months of street protests seeking his ouster and urged dialogue during the holy month of Ramadan to end the crisis.

Saleh's statement, published on the state news agency, was deliv has been receiving treatment for serious burns and other wounds he suffered in a June 2 attack on the presidential compound.

Yemen is reered from his hospital bed in Saudi Arabia, where heeling from nearly six months of protests by activists calling for Saleh to put an end to his 33 years in power. The crisis has sparked armed conflict between Saleh's forces and heavily armed tribesmen who have turned against him, further destabilizing the already fragile and impoverished country. And there are fears that Yemen's al-Qaida offshoot will gain from the turmoil and have a freer hand in plotting attacks on the West.

With Ramadan starting on Monday, Saleh appealed to the spirit of the month of reconciliation and piety and urged his opponents to embrace yet another round of dialogue.

"In this religious occasion, we assert our call for all political forces on the scene to take up dialogue as the only exit and the best means to resolve crises and disputes, and differences," he said. "There is no alternative to dialogue, stemming from national principles and the constitution."

Organizers of the street protests have refused earlier offers of dialogue. Mainstream opposition political parties have taken part only to see Saleh back out of a deal at the last minute on several occasions.

Nonetheless, in Sunday's Ramadan message, Saleh said the deal, mediated by Gulf Arab nations, should still be the basis for talks. It calls for him to transfer power within a month of signing a deal in exchange for immunity from prosecution.

Saleh sounded a defiant tone, saying change will not come under fire.

"The change everyone is seeking won't come through violence, spreading hate and envy, the mentality of coups and conspiracies, liquidation of opponents or sowing seeds of sedition," he said.

"Let's move on. ... Yemen won't get out of this crisis amid tension, holding ground in protests in the streets of the capital, which is uncivilized."

During his lengthy absence, Saleh has managed to hold on to power thanks to his powerful son Ahmed, who commands the Republican Guard.

But security in the south of the country has rapidly deteriorated. Islamist militants, some linked to al-Qaida, have overrun entire towns in the south.

Also on Sunday, tribesmen and armed residents drove the fighters from one of those towns.

Jihad Hafeez, a resident of the town of Lawder, said the militants fled Sunday to the neighboring province of Shabwa, a hotbed of Islamic militants, after two days of fierce fighting. Casualty figures were not available.