( CNN ) -- Clashes in Syria 's streets have led to the deaths of 11 civilians since Friday , according to Local Coordination Committees of Syria , a dissident group . The organization said the deaths came during the violent government crackdown on protests that have sprung up in various cities including Aleppo , Deir Azzor , Daeel and Douma . CNN can not independently verify the claim , and a government response was not immediately available . Government officials blamed the some of the violence on `` terrorists , '' according to the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency ( SANA ) . SANA reported Tuesday that the `` terrorists '' killed three security officials and two civilians . The dissident group said there have been mass arrests by the government in an attempt to quell protests . But protests have continued , according to videos posted on YouTube , which purports to show large crowds of women gathering in various cities Monday night calling for the release of detained family members . Another video shows a funeral Tuesday of a person allegedly killed by security forces . CNN can not verify the authenticity of those videos . The unrest in Syria began in mid-March after teens were arrested for writing anti-government graffiti in the southern city of Daraa , according to Amnesty International . As the clashes intensified , demonstrators changed their demands , from calls for freedom and an end to abuses by the security forces to calls for the regime 's overthrow . The United States released a strongly worded statement Monday condemning the ongoing violence in Syria and accusing the government of targeting civilians . `` The behavior of Syria 's security forces , including other such barbaric shootings , wide-scale arrests of young men and boys , brutal torture , and other abuses of basic human rights , is reprehensible , '' the U.S. State Department statement said . `` President ( Bashar al- ) Assad must understand that he is not indispensable , and we believe he is the cause of Syria 's instability , not the key to its stability . '' CNN 's Amir Ahmed contributed to this report .
Protests continue despite a government crackdown . The government blames some violence on terrorists , the state-run news agency reports . The U.S. State Department condemns the violence in a statement Monday . `` The behavior of Syria 's security forces ... is reprehensible , '' the statement says .