Syrian forces shot dead five mourners today when they fired at a funeral for villagers killed the day before in the countryside near Hama in one of the largest military assaults against pro-democracy protests, local activists said.
The five were shot dead by security police snipers from the rooftop of a public school and a municipal water tank in the town of Kfar Nubouzeh, when hundreds of mourners began chanting slogans demanding the downfall of President Bashar al-Assad, activists in contact with residents said.
Britain's Defence Secretary Liam Fox said today that events in Syria were "shocking and appalling" but said there were no plans for Nato intervention there.
Speaking at an arms fair in London, Mr Fox was responding to a question from a reporter about whether Nato might seek to replicate its Libya mission in Syria.
Agencies