document: Bashar Assad appoints Adel Safar new PM of Syria SYRIAN President Bashar Assad last night asked former agriculture minister Adel Safar to form a new government , as communications networks failed and residents in Douma prepared to bury the first of their dead . Mr Safar 's appointment came after Mr Assad fired his cabinet in a bid to quell pro-democracy protests but dashed hopes he would lift almost 50 years of emergency rule in a rare address . Mobile phone and internet networks failed yesterday in Syria '' `` due to an overload '' '' , according to a customer representative , a day after authorities had carried out a wave of arrests in protest cities , after nine people were killed in protests for reform the day before . '' `` There is an arrest campaign and phone lines are down so people suspect interference , but the government says it is a technical problem , '' '' said a resident of Douma , north of Damascus . The wave of raids targeted the southern town of Daraa , one of the centres of more than two weeks of demonstrations , as well as Douma and the industrial city of Homs . In a joint statement , eight human rights groups said 46 people had been arrested , four people had died and dozens had been wounded in the crackdown . A Douma resident said the agricultural town was calm , despite security forces withholding some bodies from the previous day 's deadly violence in an apparent bid to prevent funerals from sparking fresh protests . Witnesses said security forces had used live ammunition to disperse stone-throwing protesters after Friday prayers . Authorities denied the security forces were responsible for the deaths , blaming them on an '' `` armed group '' '' that fired from rooftops . Yusef Abu Rumiyeh , a member of parliament for Daraa , denounced security forces for opening fire on his constituents '' `` without pity '' '' and preventing the wounded from getting to hospital . '' `` The people of Hauran were waiting for President -LSB- Bashar -RSB- Assad to visit to offer his condolences . Had he done so , nothing that happened subsequently would have taken place , '' '' he said in a video posted on YouTube . '' `` Friday of Martyrs '' '' protests were also staged in the port of Latakia , Darriya , near the capital and the northeastern Kurdish towns of Qamishli and Amuda . Washington slammed the use of force and applauded the '' `` courage and dignity '' '' of demonstrators . But analysts said US President Barack Obama was not ready to throw his support behind the opposition . '' `` They are afraid that -LSB- Mr Assad -RSB- will not go gently into that good night and therefore they might try to create trouble , and that will create a civil war-type scenario , '' '' said Ammar Abdulhamid , a Washington-based Syrian dissident and democracy activist . '' '' -LSB- They fear it -RSB- will be either civil war or they will have to deal with an even more radicalised and anti-Western regime if the Assads came up in control again , '' '' he said . In Yemen , police fired teargas and live bullets at protesters holding an anti-regime demonstration in the city of Taez yesterday , killing one and wounding dozens . In the southern city of Aden , protesters hurled stones at riot police backed by tanks and duelling rallies were held in the capital Sanaa . With the US heavily invested in Yemen 's fight against al-Qa ` ida , Defence Secretary Robert Gates said a week ago the fall of Ali Abdullah Saleh 's regime could pose a '' `` real problem '' '' for the US AFP , AP
extractive_keyphrases: bashar assad appoints adel safar douma prepared deadly violence people were killed in protests us heavily invested communications north of damascus arrested civil wartype scenario demonstrators sparking fresh protests syrian president bashar assad dead control agricultural town responsible for the deaths technical problem real problem getting to hospital southern town of daraa eight human rights groups former agriculture minister adel safar people wounded in the crackdown pm of syria arrest campaign two weeks of demonstrations try to create trouble mobile phone constituents preventing the wounded died emergency rule internet networks failed yesterday targeted democracy activist douma and the industrial city of homs new government customer government waiting opening analysts previous president dignity networks dozens syrian forces antiwestern protest cities funerals applauded rumiyeh friday demonstration protesters assad blaming carried reform regime support slammed duelling us afp happened syria apparent southern protests dissident qamishli assads stones robert gates police ali abdullah denounced almost 50 darriya
abstractive_keyphrases: yemen's fight against alqa'ida people suspect interference damascus wounded emergency wartype demonstrations rights preventing pm mr safar's industrial bashar assad arrest adel safar