Syrian protesters killed after troops “fire on crowd” (VIDEO)

Activists in Syria said Friday that government security forces fired on anti-regime protesters in the capital Damascus, along with other major cities.

Tens of thousands gathered after Friday prayers for some of the largest rallies since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began more than four months ago.

The Associated Press spoke to an activist who said that two people from the same family were shot dead in the southern city of Daraa. The unnamed activist said:

All hell broke loose, the firing was intense.

State television reported that army units interfered to protect the protestors in Daraa from armed groups who were trying to infiltrate between the protesters to stir chaos, reported the Xinhua news agency.

But Al-Jazeera earlier reported than the army units in Daraa were, in fact, protecting protestors from the security forces.

The following video shows a march Friday through the Damascus district of Harasta.

According to the network's Syria blog, security forces killed seven protesters in the capital Damascus and Idlib province, as well as in Daraa.

It says the latest rallies are dubbed “Friday of captives for freedom”, with protesters demanding the release of over 12,000 people detained since March.

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