
A leading Chinese newspaper has accused western countries of stirring up civil war in Syria, where police and militia patrols have clamped down on a district of the capital to prevent further demonstrations against the president, Bashar al-Assad.
After almost a year of protests against Assad's 11-year rule, the uprising has moved to his centre of power in Damascus, where the security police surrounded a funeral of a young protester on Sunday to ensure there was no repeat of some of biggest demonstrations in the capital.
China's Communist party mouthpiece, the People's Daily, said in a front page commentary that the west's support of the opposition and its demands for Assad to step down could provoke a "large-scale civil war" that might demand foreign intervention.