<p>Police and militia patrols fanned out in the Syrian capital’s Mezze district on Sunday to prevent a repeat of protests against President Bashar al-Assad that have threatened his grip on Damascus, opposition activists said.<br /><br /></p>.<p>On the international front, China said it believed a peaceful solution to the Syrian crisis was still possible but Britain’s foreign minister said he feared the Middle Eastern country will slide into civil war.<br /><br />China’s official Xinhua news agency reflected Beijing’s view a day after a Chinese envoy met Assad in Damascus while thousands of Syrians demonstrated in the heart of the capital in one of the biggest anti-government rallies there since a nationwide uprising started nearly a year ago.<br /><br />The body of Samer al-Khatib, a young protester who was killed when security forces opened fire on the protest, was buried in Mezze on Sunday.<br /><br />Security forces maintained a heavy presence to prevent the funeral from turning into an anti-Assad demonstration, opposition activists contacted by Reuters from Amman said. <br />Fifteen pick-up trucks carrying security police and armed pro-Assad militiamen, known as “shabbiha”, surrounded the funeral as Khatib was buried quietly, they said.<br /><br />Police cars and militia jeeps patrolled Mezze while secret police agents spread out on foot, stopping men at random and checking their identification cards, they said.<br /><br />“Walking in Mezze now carries the risk of arrest. The area is quiet and even the popular food shops in Sheikh Saad are empty,” activist Moaz al-Shami said, referring to a main street.</p>
<p>Police and militia patrols fanned out in the Syrian capital’s Mezze district on Sunday to prevent a repeat of protests against President Bashar al-Assad that have threatened his grip on Damascus, opposition activists said.<br /><br /></p>.<p>On the international front, China said it believed a peaceful solution to the Syrian crisis was still possible but Britain’s foreign minister said he feared the Middle Eastern country will slide into civil war.<br /><br />China’s official Xinhua news agency reflected Beijing’s view a day after a Chinese envoy met Assad in Damascus while thousands of Syrians demonstrated in the heart of the capital in one of the biggest anti-government rallies there since a nationwide uprising started nearly a year ago.<br /><br />The body of Samer al-Khatib, a young protester who was killed when security forces opened fire on the protest, was buried in Mezze on Sunday.<br /><br />Security forces maintained a heavy presence to prevent the funeral from turning into an anti-Assad demonstration, opposition activists contacted by Reuters from Amman said. <br />Fifteen pick-up trucks carrying security police and armed pro-Assad militiamen, known as “shabbiha”, surrounded the funeral as Khatib was buried quietly, they said.<br /><br />Police cars and militia jeeps patrolled Mezze while secret police agents spread out on foot, stopping men at random and checking their identification cards, they said.<br /><br />“Walking in Mezze now carries the risk of arrest. The area is quiet and even the popular food shops in Sheikh Saad are empty,” activist Moaz al-Shami said, referring to a main street.</p>