(CNN) -- Anti-government demonstrations broke out in Syria on Friday after weekly Muslim prayers, with activists reporting at least eight deaths amid clashes between security forces and protesters.
A human rights activist told CNN that at least seven people died when security forces fired at crowds in the industrial city of Homs in western Syria.
For the past two months, Syria has been torn by street protests against political repression and a fierce security crackdown against demonstrators. The government's tough and violent actions toward marchers and its thousands of mass arrests have drawn widespread criticism.
Demonstrations have erupted after Friday prayers in Syrian cities for weeks. CNN
