At Least 3 Dead in Syrian Clashes
VOA News April 01, 2011
At least three people were reported killed on Friday as security forces and demonstrators clashed in protests sweeping across Syria.
Witnesses said government forces used gunfire, tear gas and batons to beat back protesters, a day after the government announced reform measures aimed at meeting opposition demands.
Western media reported that Syrian security men killed three protesters in Douma, a southern suburb of the capital, Damascus.
Anti-government rallies against Baath Party rule took place after Muslim prayers in at least three Syrian cities. Up to 5,000 people demanding freedom gathered in Daraa, a southern flashpoint for recent protests.
The opposition rallies have represented the most serious threat to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's 11-year rule and the longstanding authority of his family.
Government reform measures announced by Assad Thursday include the creation of a committee to study the possibility of lifting the country's emergency law. Syria's state-run news agency, SANA, said the committee will complete its study by April 25.
Lifting the emergency law has been a key demand of protesters carrying out anti-government rallies in recent weeks.
SANA also reported that Assad called for the creation of a committee to study civilian and military deaths in the cities of Daraa and Latakia, the centers of opposition activity in the past two weeks.
Before Friday's clashes, Human Rights Watch estimates that at least 61 people have been killed in clashes since the unrest began.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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