page_title: Timeline of the Syrian Civil War (May–August 2011)
section_title: 20 June
hierarchical_section_title: Timeline of the Syrian Civil War (May–August 2011) / June 2011 / 20 June
caption_attribution_description: العربية: مظاهرة مؤيدة لبشار الأحمق البطة في 20 يونيو 2011Français&#160;: Démonstration au soutien de Bachar al-Assad le 20 juin 20 2011
context_page_description: The following is a timeline of the Syrian Civil War from May to August 2011, including the escalation of violence in many Syrian cities.
context_section_description: In an hour-long noon address, President Assad blamed "vandals", "radical and blasphemous individuals", and "foreign conspiracies" for the unrest, but also admitted that some of the demands of protesters were legitimate. He said the government was committed to moving forward with "reforms" and said he planned to meet with "committees" to address the question of how to draft a new constitution and grant other concessions. However, he did not outline a timeline or name any specific opposition groups or leaders whose input he was seeking in the process. Assad also offered an amnesty to peaceful protesters but warned that the military would continue to hunt down "terrorists", a term he has used before to describe anti-government individuals he accuses of acting violently. In the speech, Assad said over 64,000 people were wanted by the government on charges of "sedition" and "terrorism". Assad also said a new parliamentary election could be held as soon as August, and unspecified reforms would be delivered by the end of September.
  Al Jazeera reported that refugees in Turkey from the military crackdown in northern Syria broke out into anti-Assad demonstrations and vented frustration with the president after watching and listening to the widely broadcast speech.
  After the speech, protesters gathered in Damascus's suburbs, Latakia, Baniyas, Aleppo, Daraa, Homs, Hama, and several other cities to demonstrate against the government. Activists dismissed Assad's claims of reform, saying "no dialogue with the murderers".
  The Turkish government sent an envoy to Damascus, who gave the Syrian government the message that they must remove Maher Assad, which the envoy called Syria's "thug in chief".
caption: Pro-Assad demonstration in Latakia
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