Monday, April 18, 2011

Twenty killed in Syria during opposition protests

At least twenty people were killed and one hundred were injured in the last hours in the riot near the Syrian city of Homs, where the funerals were held today for victims of past protests, according to the Qatari Al-Jazeera network. The television gave no details about the identity of the victims, who died last night at Homs confusing incidents and surroundings, where there was an opposition protest and an armed clash between security forces and unknown.

The increasing death toll, which previously was fourteen, coincides with the celebration in Homs, north of Damascus, and several funerals of those killed in recent protests. At the funeral, which left three mosques in the city, attended by thousands of people, a witness explained to Al Jazeera.

The riots that killed at least two dozen people were reported last night on the town of Talbisa, near Homs, near the border with Lebanon. Apparently, according to Al Jazeera, the shooting occurred during the funeral of a person who died on Saturday while developing a political protest. Also, some residents tore down a statue of President Bashar al-Assad, also sparking clashes in which, according to opposition sources, civilians loyal to the Syrian regime opened fire on demonstrators.

However, there are differing versions of what happened and the number of victims. Interior Ministry sources said that an unknown armed group killed four civilians in Talbisa. For its part, Syria's official news agency, SANA, reported that a policeman was killed and eleven others wounded when a group of snipers fired last night in this town against police officers from buildings near a highway.

A military unit was sent to the area engaged in a shootout with strangers, according to SANA, in exchange of fire that killed three of the attackers, while another fifteen unknown and five soldiers were wounded. Syria has been the scene of opposition protests demanding political reforms in the regime of Bashar al-Asad.

The Damascus government accused unidentified foreign groups of being behind these protests.

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