Damascus: Syria prepared to bury its dead on Saturday following a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests which killed 44 people and which US President Barack Obama described as a matter of "acute concern."
Funerals were planned in various regions, an activist said, as a human rights advocate put the death toll from Friday's protests at 44, with most of the casualties in the western province of Idlib and the central city of Homs.
"Syrian authorities are continuing to use excessive force and live ammunition to face popular protests in various regions throughout the country," said Ammar Al Kurabi, head of the National Organisation for Human Rights, who was reached by telephone.
Al Kurabi said 26 people were killed in the province of Idlib and 13 in Homs. Two people were also killed in the eastern town of Deir Ezzor, one in Daraya, a suburb of the capital Damascus, one in the coastal city of Latakia and one in central Hama.
Among the dead were a 12-year-old boy and four others between the ages of 15 and 18. One was also identified as a soldier. Foreign media are not allowed to travel in the country to report on the unrest making it difficult to verify information.
