Thousands of Syrians called for freedom at the funeral of eight protesters after President Bashar al-Assad named the former agriculture minister to form a new government.
Security forces opened fire on protesters in Douma, which has become a gathering point for people descending on Damascus from outlying provinces.
Syria has blamed the violence in Douma and other cities on 'armed groups.'
'Freedom, freedom, freedom. One, one, one. The Syrian people are one,' mourners chanted as they carried eight bodies draped in Syrian flags through the streets of Douma, a suburb of the capital Damascus.
The protests, inspired by Arab uprisings which have toppled leaders in Egypt and Tunisia, pose the biggest threat to Assad's 11-year rule in Syria, which has been governed by emergency law and a single political party since 1963.
Before the protests Assad had succeeded in eroding years of Western isolation while maintaining an anti-Israel alliance with Iran, hosting militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, and holding intermittent and indirect peace talks with Israel.
Activists and witnesses say more than 60 people have been killed in two weeks of protests and opposition activist Maamoun al-Homsi said on Wednesday he had the names of 105 people killed. Statements by authorities suggest a toll nearer 30.
President Assad named Adel Safar, agriculture minister in the government which resigned last week, to form a new cabinet.
Under his watch at the agriculture ministry, a water crisis that experts largely attribute to corruption and mismanagement, intensified and led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people.
Syria became a net grain importer.
