FOR the first time in Syria's six-month-long revolt, warships pounded coastal districts on August 13th, according to protesters. The embattled regime of Bashar Assad unleashed a rolling wave of all-out military assaults on its own people that Mr Assad says is now “stopped”. The main focus was on Hama, Latakia and Deir Ezzor—respectively Syria's fourth-, fifth- and sixth-largest cities. Over 350 people have died since August 1st, the start of Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting and contemplation. In total the regime has killed at least 1,800 this year.

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In Latakia, a balmy tree-lined port city, tanks and armoured vehicles attacked residential districts, including Ramel, home to a camp for Palestinian refugees. Unable to squeeze through Ramel's narrow streets, motorised units used machineguns to kill indiscriminately from a distance. At least 40 people died and thousands fled, including many Palestinians. Some left behind say that snipers prevented their flight by taking aim at columns of departing residents.

Tanks bashed their way into Deir Ezzor on August 7th, sweeping aside makeshift barricades. They fired anti-aircraft munitions from vehicle-mounted guns at buildings as they passed them. The initial assault lasted four days. Then gangs of militiamen raided houses and set up checkpoints to arrest hundreds of people, apparently using wanted lists.

The ability of Syria's armed forces to carry out successive heavy assaults has surprised some. Army jeeps are rusty and tanks look like relics from a museum. Soldiers are badly fed and underpaid. “Mounting an operation in which army, security forces and militiamen act together is no easy feat,” says one military analyst. “Their logistical capabilities are better than we thought.” The Syrian army was designed as a static force to ward off an Israeli attack, but it has shown itself to be surprisingly flexible. Troops have been constantly on the move since the uprising began. Loyal units accompany less-trusted ones. Occasional desertions and the mysterious sacking of Ali Habib, the defence minister, suggest some unease over the crackdown. But the overall chain of command seems remarkably robust.

Mr Assad has one military trump card left. He may yet deploy the air force, especially if Damascus and Aleppo, the two largest cities, became more restive than they are now. Even so, Mr Assad looks decidedly insecure. No matter how hard he cracks down, the protesters always seem to come back.