Facebook spurs Syria protests to honour 'martyrs'

By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 5 June 2012 02:13 IST

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Highlights

A Facebook group called for fresh protests in Syria on Tuesday to show "loyalty with the martyrs, wounded and prisoners" after a bloody weekend crackdown on anti-regime demonstrators.

A Facebook group called for fresh protests in Syria on Tuesday to show "loyalty with the martyrs, wounded and prisoners" after a bloody weekend crackdown on anti-regime demonstrators.

"Today, April 12, is the day of loyalty towards the martyrs, wounded and prisoners, who are the heroes of the free youth revolution," said the organizers on Facebook page the Syrian Revolution, which has played a key role in mobilizing recent protests.

"We will shout slogans despite our wounds and hold peaceful sit-ins until we obtain our freedom," the group said. "We will not stop, nor backtrack. Our cause is clear. It is a revolution by the people for the people and the demands are clear. Our path is peaceful and the objective is freedom."

The Syrian Revolution call came after a bloody weekend crackdown that left at least 30 civilians dead in the flashpoint towns of Daraa and Banias.

Nine soldiers, including two officers, were also killed and several wounded when their patrol was ambushed outside Banias, a coastal city 280 kilometers northwest of Damascus, the official SANA news agency said.

Syrian human rights activists have reported a countrywide wave of arrests focused on protest participants and organizers.

Syrian students on Monday staged a rally, rare for Damascus, to express solidarity with protesters killed over the weekend.

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