Dozens more Syrians killed in protests

The protesters in cities across Syria — including the capital of Damascus — called for Assad's ouster, with some chanting "We are not afraid!"
Security forces shot dead at least 16 people in the protest epicenter of Deraa, rights activists said. Military officers said four soldiers were killed and two captured by "armed terrorists" in the city, though a rights activist said the men had been killed defending protesters.
In Homs, at least 12 people, including three members of the security forces, were killed in the industrial city, according to an activist and the Interior Ministry.
"Three police officers ... were shot dead today after being targeted by extremist terrorist groups when they performed their duties," the official SANA news agency quoted a ministry source as saying. A human rights activist said security forces killed nine people in Homs, 160 km from Damascus.
Outside Homs, thousands chanted "We don't love you!" and "Bye, bye Bashar! We will see you in The Hague!" as the sound of gunfire crackled in the distance.
A witness in Deraa said residents stayed indoors because the city has been under siege by the military since Monday, when thousands of soldiers backed by tanks and snipers stormed in. People were too afraid even to venture out to mosques for Friday prayers, the witness said.
A devastating picture was emerging of Deraa, which has been without electricity, water and telephones since Monday, as residents flee to neighboring countries. Residents inside the city begged for international intervention.
"Nobody can move, they have snipers on the high roofs," a resident told The Associated Press using a satellite phone. "They are firing at everything." At the Jordanian side of the Syrian border, several Deraa residents who had just crossed over said there is blood on the streets of the city.
Large demonstrations broke out in Damascus, Homs, the coastal cities of Banias and Latakia, the northern cities of Raqqa and Hama, and the northeastern town of Qamishli.
In Damascus' central Midan neighborhood, witnesses said about 2,000 people marched and chanted, "God, Syria and freedom only!" in heavy rain, but security forces opened fire with bullets and tear gas, scattering them.
"Oh great Syrian Army! Lift the blockade on Deraa!" protesters chanted in the Damascus suburb of Barzeh, according to video footage posted by activists on YouTube.
The UN Human Rights Council endorsed a US call for an investigative mission on the bloodshed in Syria on Friday by voting for a resolution that also condemned the violent government crackdown.
Although the Western resolution was watered down, it managed to rally crucial African and Latin American support to overcome Russia and China's powerful opposition to international condemnation of Syria.