49 killed at Syria demonstrations

Syrian security forces fired bullets and tear gas at pro-democracy demonstrations across the country today, killing at least 49 people – including a young boy – in the bloodiest day of the uprising against President Bashar Assad’s authoritarian regime, witnesses and a human rights group said.

The protests, held every Friday, have become weekly bloodbaths as security forces try to crush the demonstrations. But the mounting death tolls have only served to invigorate the protest movement whose demands have snowballed from modest reforms to the downfall of the 40-year Assad dynasty.