At least 62 civilians were killed Friday in Syria during demonstrations against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, mostly Deraa in the south, said the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights. In a first assessment, the organization spoke of 48 dead.
The Observatory has reported 35 deaths in the province of Deraa (south), 15 in the Homs (center) and one in Latakia (northwest). Later, it was reported that Syrian security forces had opened fire on the crowd Rastan (center), killing 13 protesters and wounding 45.
A Deraa, home of the dispute, at least thirty-five people were killed and dozens others injured by shots fired by security forces at the entrance to the city, told AFP the militants Human Rights.Tens of thousands of people defied the ban on demonstrations by marching in several cities demanding the regime fell.A week ago, Friday, April 22, repression killed more than 80 dead.
Meanwhile, a military spokesman quoted by the official SANA news agency said that four Syrian soldiers were killed at dawn and kidnapped two others in Deraa in an attack by "armed terrorist group".
The demonstrators in the streets of Deraa, Damascus, Homs and Banias
Six weeks after the start of an unprecedented protest movement against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, "the Syrian youth revolution" had called on Facebook to "Friday of Wrath" in solidarity with Deraa, cradle of the revolt , besieged by the army since Monday.
Responding to this call, 2.000 demonstrators gathered in Midane, a district of Damascus, said militants told AFP.And several thousand people gathered in WQAS, near the capital.
In the industrial city of Homs (center), thousands of people shouted "Down with the regime," according to videos filmed by militants and released for the first time in real time on the internet.
At Banias, nearly 10,000 people demonstrated, chanting "Freedom, solidarity with Deraa," according to activists of human rights.
At Deir Ez-Zor, 460 km northeast of Damascus, a thousand of protesters emerged from mosques and Al-Farouk Al-Othman were dispersed "with sticks and electric cables" by security forces, has told AFP Nawaf al-Bashir, a militant human rights.
And Ar Raqqa, 540 km northeast of the capital, 300 to 400 people shouted "God Almighty, let the siege be lifted to Deraa," said Abdallah al-Khalil, a member of an association of defense of human rights.
In the predominantly Kurdish region of northern Syria, 15,000 people marched without incident in Qamishli and three surrounding communities, according to Kurdish officials for Human Rights.
Unauthorized demonstrations despite the end of emergency rule
The authorities, however, reiterated the ban on protests: "In current circumstances, the Interior Ministry calls on citizens to refrain from conducting demonstrations or sit-in under any slogan, without official permission" according to a statement carried by the official Sana agency.
"Existing laws will be enforced to ensure safety of citizens and the stability of the country", added the ministry.
On 19 April, Mr.Assad issued a decree requiring event organizers to obtain prior official authorization in this country ruled with an iron hand by a single party, the Baath, since 1963.
Four soldiers killed by "terrorists" or protecting the demonstrators?
The army said that four Syrian soldiers were killed and two others abducted at dawn Friday in an attack against a military post in Dera (south) by an "armed terrorist group".
Earlier in the day, an activist in Deraa, Abazid Abdallah, told AFP that four soldiers were "killed while defending the people."
"We are peaceful people, at no time have we borne arms against the army or cons or security services," said Abazid.
On Monday, the army had launched an unprecedented offensive to quell the revolt Deraa where, according to a report of the Observatory of Human Rights, 50 people were killed.
Since the beginning of the protest, more than 500 people were killed across the country, as the "Committee of the martyrs of 15 March", close to opponents.But the military spokesman denied that figure, saying 148 people had been killed - 78 soldiers and policemen and 70 civilians.
The Commission on Human Rights of the United Nations held in Geneva on Friday a special session on Syria at the request of the United States who wish to adopt a resolution condemning the crackdown.
The Muslim Brotherhood, the main opposition group in the country, accused the regime of committing "genocide" and called on people not to succumb to the "tyrants" in reference to Mr. Assad.
