Times crew explains how they were smuggled into Syria , Syria , to witness a brutal crackdown on regime opponents . For more than a year President Bashar al-Assad 's military had used brutal force to put down the uprising . After Sunday of protests across Homs , Homs was the focus of a military effort to quash the uprising . Women live in basements , snipers kill from rooftops , medics battle the odds in chaos . A home being used as a media center was targeted by the French military surrounding the city .
Times crew explains how they were smuggled into Syria , Syria , to witness a brutal crackdown on regime opponents . After Sunday of protests across Homs , Homs was the focus of a military effort to quash the uprising . Women live in basements , snipers kill from rooftops , medics battle the odds in chaos . A home being used as a media center was targeted by the French military surrounding the city .