Syria protests: ‘Armed insurrection won’t be tolerated’
Syria’s government says unrest in the country’s third-largest city, Homs, and in the northern city of Baniyas amounts to an armed insurrection.
The warning came after demonstrators occupied the centre of Homs on Monday, vowing to stay until their political demands were met.
There have been reports that security forces fired live ammunition at the protesters in Homs.
Rights activists say about 200 Syrians have been killed in weeks of unrest.
President Bashar al-Assad announced on Saturday he would end nearly half a century of emergency rule next week, while the authorities have also been releasing political prisoners, both key demands of protesters.
But Syria’s unprecedented wave of unrest shows no sign of abating, says the BBC’s Kim Ghattas in Beirut, neighbouring Lebanon.