A picture released by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows onlookers gathering at the scene of twin blasts in Damascus on May 10. Syrian troops opened fire on anti-regime protesters in Damascus on Friday, wounding five people, a monitoring group said. © AFP Ho
BEIRUT – Syrian troops opened fire on anti-regime protesters in Damascus on Friday, wounding five people, a monitoring group said.
“Five civilians were wounded when regime troops opened fire in the Tadamon neighbourhood” of the capital, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
“Some of the wounded are in a critical condition,” activist Mohammad al-Shami told AFP via Skype.
Thousands of people were taking part in demonstrations across Syria on Friday, a day after the deadliest bomb attacks of the 14-month uprising against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime struck the capital.
In Hama province of central Syria, troops shot and wounded 20 demonstrators in the town of Helfaya, where two civilians were killed in a raid, according to the Britain-based Observatory.
In Aleppo, where anti-regime sentiment has escalated in the past month, “many people were wounded by regime forces during demonstrations” across the northern city, activist Mohammad al-Halabi told AFP via Skype.
“Protesters denounced the failure of the international community to protect the Syrian people and renewed calls for immediate military intervention,” Halabi added.
