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    October 16, 2011

Activists: Syrian Security Forces Fire on Mourners

   VOA News
   Syrians in support of Syria's opposition at a solidarity protest in
   Athens, Greece, October 15, 2011.
   Photo: AFP
   Syrians in support of Syria's opposition at a solidarity protest in
   Athens, Greece, October 15, 2011.

   Syrian activists say security forces in the east have opened fire on
   mourners attending the funeral of an activist with the Syrian
   Observatory for Human Rights, as government forces continued arrests
   near the capital, Damascus.
   The Britain-based observatory said Sunday that government forces in the
   eastern Syrian city of Deir el-Zour fired live bullets as about 7,000
   mourners took to the streets for the funeral of Ziad al-Obeidi. The
   42-year-old activist had been in hiding for the two months and was
   killed Saturday by security forces who had been hunting him.
   An undated handout photo of killed Syrian activist Ziad al-Obeidi.

Reuters

   An undated handout photo of killed Syrian activist Ziad al-Obeidi.

   Activists say government forces also carried out raids against
   dissenters near the capital, Damascus. They say forces in Zabadani,
   some 50 kilometers from the capital, set up roadblocks and searched
   door-to-door, arresting at least 25 people.
   Rights groups say security forces also arrested 19 people in the
   Damascus suburb of Dumeir Sunday.
   Meanwhile, Arab League foreign ministers are holding an emergency
   meeting in Cairo Sunday to discuss the Syrian crisis. Gulf Arab states
   called for the meeting.
   Saudi Arabia and some other Gulf states already have pulled their
   ambassadors from Damascus in protest against the Syrian government's
   deadly crackdown on opposition to President Bashar al-Assad.
   The United Nations says the violence in Syria has killed more than
   3,000 people since anti-government protests began in March of this
   year.
   Syrian authorities have blamed much of the violence on gunmen or
   "terrorist" groups.
   On Saturday, President Assad appointed a 29-member committee to draft a
   new constitution. The move appears to be a step by Assad to address the
   growing international condemnation he has faced for the crackdown on
   dissent.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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References

   1. http://twitter.com/VOAMiddleEast
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