Violence intensified in Syria

DAMASCUS - As violence has been ongoing in Syria with the government troops and armed rebels coming to a showdown, the regional players are seemingly having new calculations and drawing new landscape for the conflict.

Syrian state media said the government troops have dealt deadly blows to insurgent groups in three focal-points over the weekend as activists reported shelling and clashes in a number of areas nationwide, adding that as many as 45 people have been killed Friday so far.

The Syrian forces have inflicted heavy losses in central town of Qusair, southern Daraa and eastern Deir al-Zour provinces, according to state-run SANA news agency. Four "terrorists" were killed in Daraa.

Meanwhile, a pro-government Facebook page said that Syrian troops have surrounded northern Aleppo province in preparation for a cleansing campaign after the armed rebels moved their battle to the northern province, which is considered as the commercial capital of the unrest-hit country.

The street battles in Aleppo intensified for days after the opposition fighters have apparently lost a battle to subdue the capital.

A pro-government Syrian daily, al-Watan, has described Aleppo city as "the mother of the battles."

Experts believe that the western adamant stance has been the reason behind pushing the situation in Syria toward deeper conflict.

They said the West has been pushing the Syrian opposition and the armed elements on ground to refuse dialogue with the current regime.

Furthermore, reports of extremists from al-Qaida and like-minded groups exploiting the situation in Syria added new complication to the Syrian conflict.

On Thursday, a Muslim Imam in Aleppo was dragged out of a mosque in front of dozens of worshipers at gun point and later found killed. Media reports said Sheikh Abdullatif al-Shami was known of being a pro-government one.

As the situation seems confusing, local Sky News said Ikhlas al-Badawi, an MP from Aleppo has defected and fled to Turkey.

Turkey has emerged as a major player in the Syrian crisis as it shelters leadership of the rebels Free Syrian Army and opposition.

Citing officials from the Gulf, Reuters said Turkey has set up a secret base in Adana in Turkey in collaboration with Saudi Arabia and Qatar to supply military and communications aid to Syria's rebels.

On Wednesday, Turkey decided to close all border crossings with Syria, ostensibly avoiding the spread of clashes to its frontier.

Also, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is reinforcing security on the occupied Golan Heights in fears that the unrest in Syria may endanger the Israeli citizens living in that area, media reports said on Friday.

Observers, however, believe that the recent movements of Turkey and Israel came amid fears of the Syrian chemical arsenal.

Syrian foreign ministry has stressed that chemical or germ weapons are guarded by the Syrian army and won't be used in an internal conflict. The ministry, however, said those weapons would only be used in specific cases of outside aggression.

The ministry's statements raised the ire of the Western allies.

The New York Times has recently reported that US administration officials have been in talks with officials in Turkey and Israel over how to manage a Syrian government collapse.

It said the "White House is now holding daily high-level meetings to discuss a broad range of contingency plans - including safeguarding Syria's vast chemical weapons arsenal."

The Syrian administration has for long accused the West and their regional allies of being behind the escalating violence in the Middle East.