Supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have gathered for the funerals of 26 people killed in a suicide blast in Damascus Friday.

Thousands of mourners walked in a funeral procession Saturday in the capital, waving Syrian flags and voicing support for Mr. Assad.

The suicide bomber carried out the attack at a busy intersection near a school and police station in the central district of Midan. A bus carrying policemen appeared to be the target of the blast, which wounded 63 people.

The government and opposition have traded accusations about who orchestrated the attack.

Meanwhile, activists say Syrian security forces opened fire Saturday on anti-government demonstrators holding sit-ins in parts of the country, including the flashpoint central city of Homs. At least one person was killed.

Activists say at least 17 civilians died in violence late Friday.

On Sunday, the Arab League will meet in Egypt to assess the findings of an Arab League observer mission in Syria and decide whether it will continue.

Criticism has surfaced about the effectiveness of the observer mission, which is monitoring President Assad's compliance with a plan to end a 10-month crackdown on protesters.

Qatar's prime minister says the mission has made mistakes.

Mr. Assad has pledged to withdraw security forces from cities, release political prisoners and allow anti-government protests.

The United Nations estimates that 5,000 people have died since the uprising against Mr. Assad's regime began in March. But the global activist group Avaaz says nearly 7,000 people have been killed in the unrest.

Syria has long accused armed terrorists of driving the uprising.