Syria unrest: Protesters call for international help
Syrian protesters have taken to the streets in their thousands following Friday prayers, calling for international protection from the security forces.
Some called for international observers be sent in a monitoring role.
According to the UN, more than 2,200 people have been killed in Syria since anti-government protests began more than five months ago.
The government says hundreds of its personnel have been killed.
Foreign reporters are not being allowed in to Syria so news organisations are largely dependent on unverified amateur video and reports by rights groups.
Protest organisers - who try to give each week’s demonstrations a common theme - this Friday called for greater international protection, says the BBC’s Owen Bennett Jones, in Beirut in neighbouring Lebanon.
“We want international protection!” protesters shouted in cities across the country, the AP news agency reported.
A message posted on the “Syrian Revolution 2011” Facebook page called on the UN to set up a permanent observer mission in Syria.