Syrian security forces opened fire to disperse demonstrations in the cities of Aleppo and Damascus on Friday as thousands took to the streets across Syria, activists and monitors said.
The northern city of Aleppo was the scene of 12 protests, with demonstrators chanting support for Homs and other areas besieged by regime forces, according to local activist Mohammed al-Halabi.
"Hundreds were taking part several demonstrations in the Halab al-Jadida district, while thousands demonstrated in other areas such as Salah el-Din, Fardoss and Marjeh," he told AFP.
He said security forces fired live rounds at protesters in Salah el-Din and Saif a-Dawla neighbourhoods, where several people were wounded and others arrested.
Five demonstrators were shot and wounded as security forces fired to disperse a protest outside Salam mosque in the Barzeh area of Damascus, after weekly Muslim prayers, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
Activist Mohammed al-Shami told AFP that thousands of demonstrators turned out in several areas of the capital and its suburbs, such as Mazzeh, Hajar al-Aswad, al-Aasali, Douma, Qadam, Qaboon and Kfar Sousa.
'We shall not abandon Homs. We shall not abandon Daraa," protesters chanted in a video posted online, hailing the main centres of dissent against President Bashar al-Assad's regime.
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