• 24 killed in Deraa after thousands take to streets
• UN approves inquiry into government violence
Julian Borger and Foreign Staff
guardian.co.uk, Friday 29 April 2011
"Thousands of Syrians defied their government's bloody attempts to suppress protests, braving gunfire from security forces to demonstrate in Damascus and across the country.
Initial reports said at least 24 people had been shot dead, most of them in the opposition stronghold of Deraa, where villagers tried to break through the security cordon to relieve its besieged population.
Further deaths were reported in Latakia and Homs after the security forces opened fire on demonstrators. There was news of protests in 50 towns and villages including Hama, Aleppo, the coastal cities of Latakia and Banias, Deir Ezzor in the east, and Qamishli in the north-east. Unrest was also reported from the Syria-Jordan border, which is straddled by the Haurani tribes.
Despite the government crackdown, the demonstrations – many starting as Friday worshippers left mosques – appeared to be at least as big as last week. Even more significantly, activists said, the protests spread closer into the centre of Damascus.....
Meanwhile, the international community stepped up its pressure on Damascus. The UN human rights council in Geneva approved an investigation of the Syrian use of violence against protesters and called for the immediate release of political prisoners and the lifting of restrictions on the press and the internet....
Human rights monitors in Damascus said the protests were significant, coming in the wake of the most brutal week yet. The government had warned against holding any demonstrations on Friday. Syrian media said the interior ministry had not approved any "march, demonstration or sit-ins".
"It is significant that people came out today," said Razan Zeitouneh, a lawyer and activist in Damascus. "After all the violence, after bringing the military inside and around the cities, cutting water, electricity and communications, still people came out.""
• UN approves inquiry into government violence
Julian Borger and Foreign Staff
guardian.co.uk, Friday 29 April 2011
"Thousands of Syrians defied their government's bloody attempts to suppress protests, braving gunfire from security forces to demonstrate in Damascus and across the country.
Initial reports said at least 24 people had been shot dead, most of them in the opposition stronghold of Deraa, where villagers tried to break through the security cordon to relieve its besieged population.
Further deaths were reported in Latakia and Homs after the security forces opened fire on demonstrators. There was news of protests in 50 towns and villages including Hama, Aleppo, the coastal cities of Latakia and Banias, Deir Ezzor in the east, and Qamishli in the north-east. Unrest was also reported from the Syria-Jordan border, which is straddled by the Haurani tribes.
Despite the government crackdown, the demonstrations – many starting as Friday worshippers left mosques – appeared to be at least as big as last week. Even more significantly, activists said, the protests spread closer into the centre of Damascus.....
Meanwhile, the international community stepped up its pressure on Damascus. The UN human rights council in Geneva approved an investigation of the Syrian use of violence against protesters and called for the immediate release of political prisoners and the lifting of restrictions on the press and the internet....
Human rights monitors in Damascus said the protests were significant, coming in the wake of the most brutal week yet. The government had warned against holding any demonstrations on Friday. Syrian media said the interior ministry had not approved any "march, demonstration or sit-ins".
"It is significant that people came out today," said Razan Zeitouneh, a lawyer and activist in Damascus. "After all the violence, after bringing the military inside and around the cities, cutting water, electricity and communications, still people came out.""
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