DAMASCUS: Syrian opposition groups demanded President Bashar Al-Assad's immediate resignation Thursday, snubbing government concessions after a week in which activists said security forces killed more than 60 people. Opposition groups called for the “immediate resignation of President Bashar Al-Assad from all functions he occupies,” in a joint declaration at the end of a two-day meeting in Turkey's Mediterranean resort of Antalya. They urged the holding of “parliamentary and presidential elections within a period that will not exceed one year” following Assad's ouster and vowed to work “to bring down the regime”. But the opposition groups opposed “any foreign intervention” in Syria such as the NATO airstrikes in Libya. “Everything must be done to preserve Syria's unity and territorial integrity,” their statement read. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, meanwhile, said the international community needs to be more united on dealing with the Syria government's crackdown on the pro-democracy movement. Russia Thursday cautioned against pushing for “regime change” in Syria. On the ground, security forces armed with heavy machineguns shot dead 15 civilians in Rastan Thursday, a human rights activist said, adding to a toll of at least 43 killed in towns of the flashpoint Homs region since Sunday. Gunfire was also heard in Talbisa. In a bid to snuff out night-time demonstrations, Syrian authorities slapped a curfew on Dael, a town near the southern hotbed of Daraa where clashes erupted Thursday. Anti-regime activists in Syria have called for “Children's Friday” protests to honor the children killed in the uprising, such as 13-year-old Hamza Al-Khatib whom activists say was tortured to death, a charge denied by the authorities. “The people want the fall of the regime. Tomorrow, it's ‘Children's Friday' of rising up against injustice, like the adults,” the activists announced on their Facebook page Syrian Revolution 2011, an engine of the revolt. The UN children's agency UNICEF says at least 30 children have been shot dead in the revolt against Assad's rule which erupted in mid-March. – Agence France
