Terror reigned in the Syrian city of Daraa on Wednesday as intermittent gunfire rang out overnight and snipers held their positions on rooftops

Terror reigned in the Syrian city of Daraa on Wednesday as intermittent gunfire rang out overnight and snipers held their positions on rooftops, a witness there said.
He said the situation "is worsening day after day" where the country's recent anti-government protests started.
Five people were killed by sniper fire on Tuesday, including a 6-year-old girl, said the witness, who is not being identified for security reasons. But no funerals have taken place, he said, because the cemetery is occupied by security forces.
Half a world away, United Nations Security Council will be briefed Wednesday on the crisis in Syria when it meets in a private session, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said.
Syria's ambassador to the United Nations rejected Tuesday a call for an independent investigation into the reported killings of hundreds of demonstrators by government forces.
"Syria has a government, has a state," Bashar Jaafari told reporters at the world body. "We can undertake any investigation by our own selves, with full transparency. We have nothing to hide. We regret what is going on, but you should also acknowledge that this unrest and riots, in some of their aspects, have hidden agendas."