Syrian troops backed by tanks stormed at least three towns early Monday, April and snipers fired from rooftops, killing at least five people as the crackdown intensifies on a five-week uprising against President Bashar Assad's authoritarian regime, according to AP.
The most serious violence appeared to be in the southern city of Daraa, where the protest movement kicked off more than a month ago after authorities arrested a group of teenagers who scrawled anti-regime graffiti on a wall. Since then, more than 300 people have been killed across the country as the anti-government demonstrations have swelled.
Since Saturday, Syrian security forces have detained dozens of opposition activists as authorities turned to pinpoint raids to quell the revolt. The raids were concentrated around the capital Damascus and the central city of Homs, a hotbed of demonstrations against Assad's rule.
