DAMASCUS – Pro-democracy protests have erupted again in Syria, a day after President Bashar al-Assad announced a new cabinet in hopes of quelling the growing movement.
Witnesses said thousands of people marched in the southern city of Daraa after Friday prayers, chanting for freedom. The city has become the epicenter of protests which began last month.
On Thursday, President Assad unveiled a new 30-member cabinet and ordered the release of detainees arrested in the last month as he faces growing resistance to his rule.
Meantime, Human Rights Watch says Syrian security forces have tortured and mistreated protesters who have been arrested since anti-government demonstrations began.
In a report Friday, the U.S.-based group said former detainees reported being beaten, electrocuted and whipped by security and intelligence service officers. It called on Syrian authorities to stop the abuse and to free people who have been detained arbitrarily, including lawyers and journalists.
A Syrian rights group has said more than 200 people have been killed as authorities have cracked down on street demonstrations. Syrian officials have blamed the unrest on lawless gangs.
