Syria's Ground Zero The city of Homs is bearing the brunt of Bashar al-Assad's bloody crackdown. FEBRUARY 6, 2012 In the 11 months of President Bashar al-Assad's bloody crackdown in Syria, the assault on Homs has been the bloodiest. This western Syrian city of roughly 1 million people, close to the border with Lebanon, has been a flashpoint of the Syrian revolt. Residents of Homs have taken to the