New 'Freedom Convoy' Attempt on Syria Uprising Anniversary

Syrian activists will make a fresh attempt at entering from Turkey with medical aid for the uprising's March 15 anniversary, organizers said Monday, after their "Freedom Convoy" was turned away last week.

"The Freedom Convoy will reconvene in Gaziantep (in Turkey's southeast) on March 15 because it is the day when the popular revolt began against the regime of (President Bashar al-) Assad," Moayad Skaf, the group's spokesperson, was quoted as saying by the Anatolia news agency on Monday.

"We will take measures to eliminate the deficiencies during our first organization and will work in a more planned and coordinated manner," said Skaf.

Turkish police last Thursday stopped a group of around 200 Syrian activists some 15 kilometers (10 miles) from Oncupinar customs gate in the southeastern Turkish town of Kilis.

Another "Freedom Convoy" which had been hoping to enter Syria via Jordan was canceled after being blocked by the authorities there.

The Syrian National Council, an umbrella organization including most of the opposition groups in Syria, has expressed support for the initiative.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, once a close ally of Assad, has been at the forefront of international criticism over the Damascus regime's bloody crackdown on protests.

Both Erdogan and Jordan's King Abdullah II have called on Assad to quit.

Turkey has also become a haven for many Syrian opposition activists since the start of the uprising which has claimed more than 5,000 lives, according to U.N. estimates.