Damascus -- Thousands of people protested in the Syrian city of Deraa on Sunday as a government delegation arrived to pay condolences for victims killed by security forces in demonstrations for freedom this week, residents said.

The government sought to appease popular discontent by promising to release 15 children whose arrest helped fuel the protests, the boldest challenge to the ruling elite since uprisings swept the Arab World this year.

The demonstration marks the third day of protests in Deraa, a main city in the strategic Hauran plateau