At least 32 killed as Syrian troops open fire

Because many Syrians believe Assad incapable of reform, they only heard the second part of the statement, he said. “The people already feel there is no point of return. This man is not a reformer,” he said. “The point of no return came before Obama’s speech, but what Obama did was announce it. Now people are saying, we can do it, he will have to leave.”

Friday’s violence may only hasten the point at which the Obama administration reaches the same conclusion, said Andrew Tabler, a fellow at the Washington Institute of Near East Policy, who believes Obama’s comments marked only the start of an escalating pressure campaign against the Syrian leadership.

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Middle East and North Africa in turmoil

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• Syrian troops fire on protesters; at least 3 dead

“It’s pretty clear that people in Washington are contemplating a post-Assad future,” he said. “Whether that’s sketched out in their minds or how it might happen isn’t clear.”

Friday marked the 10th consecutive week that protesters have taken to the streets and been shot at in what has become an escalating cycle of demonstrations, gunfire, arrests and more demonstrations. Syrian troops have also besieged and bombarded several of the top protest flash points, but even in some of those towns, protests have continued.

Among the dozens of towns where protests occurred was Baniyas, which was invaded by tanks two weeks ago and where every man aged 18 to 45 was detained in the town’s soccer stadium. Video posted on YouTube showed hundreds of protesters marching in Baniyas, chanting for the fall of the regime.

In addition to the 32 deaths, about 200 people were injured by gunfire aimed at protesters, and the toll could rise, said Tarif, the human rights activist.

There were reports of small-scale demonstrations in six neighborhoods of Damascus, a sign that the unrest may gradually be creeping into the capital, which has remained immune from the unrest elsewhere. Syria’s biggest city, Aleppo, has also remained immune from the protests, although there have been several quickly quelled efforts over the past week by students to stage protests on the university campus there.

The absence of unrest in these two main cities illustrates the enormous obstacles the protesters still face in their campaign against the regime, suggesting that the bloodshed is likely only to continue.

One fear is that protesters, living in a heavily armed and volatile part of the Middle East, will become frustrated and acquire weapons, something that appears to have already occurred in at least one town near the border with Lebanon where there have been armed clashes between the opposition and the security forces.

But the vast majority of protests have been peaceful, and Zeitouneh, the human rights lawyer, said the opposition movement is determined not to take up arms.

“The people are insisting on a peaceful movement because this is their point of power,” she said. “They know they are powerful because they are peaceful.”