Beirut: Activists say Syrian government troops have fired live ammunition to disperse mourners gathered for the funeral of an activist in the country`s east.
There was no immediate word on casualties from Sunday`s shooting in the city of Deir el-Zour. The activist, Ziad al-Obeidi, was shot dead on Saturday. He worked for the British-based Observatory for Human Rights in Syria and had been in hiding since troops stormed the city two months ago.
Observatory director Rami Abdul-Rahman said some 7,000 people calling for the downfall of President Bashar Assad took part in Sunday`s funeral procession. Abdul-Rahman and other activists said security forces also stormed areas near the capital Damascus and were carrying out house-to-house arrests as part of efforts to suppress the resilient anti-government uprising.
Bureau Report