Syrian security forces fired live bullets and tear gas Friday on pro-democracy demonstrations across the country, killing at least 15 people — including a young boy — as the uprising against President Bashar Assad's authoritarian regime defied a deadly security crackdown, witnesses said.

Protesters flooded into the streets after Muslim prayers in at least five major areas across the country, a sign that Assad's attempts to quell the monthlong protests with a deadly crackdown and promises of reform have all but failed.