Syria's Assad emerges in public to mark Eid al-Fitr

The outing marks the Syrian president's first appearance in public since a bombing last month that killed four of his top security officials.

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"All this points to a state of confusion and lack of confidence at the leadership level," said Syria-based activist Mohammad Saeed. "It shows they don't have security in the capital under control."

Rumors of another defection

Assad's appearance comes amid much speculation on the whereabouts of Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa, who was said by some members of the Free Syrian Army to have defected to the opposition. On Saturday, his office denied the reports. Al-Sharaa was not shown in the footage at the mosque with Assad, but observers said the two rarely attend the same functions for security reasons.

The last time Assad appeared in public was on July 4 when he gave a speech in parliament.

Since then, there has been a sharp escalation in the civil war with almost daily fighting in some districts of the capital.

As it battles for survival against the rebels, the regime has increasingly resorted to the use of airstrikes, particularly in the north where rebels have seized large swathes of territory.

Abdelbaset Sieda, president of the Syrian National Council opposition group, reiterated his call for international powers to militarily enforce a no-fly zone that would prevent Syrian regime aircraft being used against rebels as well as safe corridors to protect civilians.

"Failing that, the entire region is headed toward a future open to all kinds of catastrophic possibilities," the Sweden-based Sieda said in a speech addressing the Syrian people for Eid al-Fitr. A video of the speech was posted on YouTube.

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The Syrian opposition has been calling for a no-fly zone over parts of Syria for months. Russia, one of Syria's most powerful international backers, rejects the idea.

Syrians also protested in many other parts of the country, demanding freedom and the ouster of the regime.

Opposition groups reported fierce artillery shelling that targeted a main cemetery in the rebel-held town of Rastan, north of the central city of Homs. Activists said residents were visiting graves of dead relatives at the time, but the reports could not be independently confirmed.

The British-based activist group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said one woman was killed in the shelling of Rastan.

* Associated Press writer Albert Aji contributed to this report from Damascus, Syria.