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Syrian police, Kurds clash in Aleppo

ALEPPO, Syria, March 20, 2006 (AFP) - Syrian security forces Monday broke up a demonstration by thousands of Kurds celebrating their New Year in the northern town of Aleppo and made several arrests, a human rights activist said.

Mustapha Suleiman, who was at the scene, said some 3,000 Kurds had gathered in the Ashrafiyeh district of Aleppo to celebrate Newroz, carrying candles and Kurdish flags.

"The police fired tear-gas at the demonstrators who refused to leave and threw stones at the security forces," he told AFP, adding that two policemen were slightly injured and several Kurds arrested.

An AFP correspondent in the city said a car was on fire after the clashes and telephone boxes had been left damaged, while security forces stayed posted at the scene after the demonstrators were dispersed.

In March 2004, bloody clashes, initially sparked by a riot between rival football fans, pitted mainly Kurdish protestors against security forces and Arab tribesmen in Aleppo and Qameshli, another northern town.

Forty people were killed during several days of violence, according to Kurdish sources, though Syrian authorities said 25 people had died.