Will Syrian protesters fight back?

LONDON — The protesters marched through the streets in defiance of government snipers.

Unarmed, chests thrust forward, they chanted: “Salmiya, salmiya,” or peaceful, peaceful.

Demonstrators across Syria have managed to remain that way for more than five months amid a brutal government crackdown that has left at least 2,200 dead, according to the United Nations. 

The government has said that armed gangs have infiltrated the protests, but most of the videos beamed out of Syria appear to show otherwise.

Some reports suggest that protest leaders have even set up checkpoints to keep weapons out of the demonstrations.

Now, the protesters’ goal to keep the uprising unarmed is facing a further challenge: the success of Libya’s rebels in overthrowing Muammar Gaddafi. 

More from GlobalPost: A splintered Syrian opposition 

Some Syrian protesters, inspired by the jubilant scenes of victory in Tripoli, are growing impatient over the slow progress of their own movement. 

A handful of Syrian activists are now calling for international military intervention, a move many Syrians had opposed because they wanted to bring about change on their own and didn’t want the West involved. 

But these Syrian activists have had enough.

More from GlobalPost: Syria sanctions? Try mixed messages

In an attempt to get the attention of the U.N., activists have turned to Twitter to launch the #WakeUpUNSC campaign.

Some want a Libya-style no-fly zone. Others want ground troops, a kind of international protection force to keep the government at bay.

World powers have so far been reluctant to intervene in Syria, even if they have issued condemnations of the violence. 

The U.N. would likely balk at another costly, prolonged intervention that would ultimately result in regime change, as it did in Libya. 

At a meeting in Paris last week, the European Union, which buys 95 percent of Syrian oil, agreed to impose an oil embargo on Damascus. 

But that won’t take effect until Nov. 15, which will leave plenty of time for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to stockpile weapons and continue fending off protesters.

But then, few expected the NATO campaign in Libya.

Another group of protesters, the Syrian Revolutionary Council of the Coordination Committees, may not wait for the world to respond. 

It has considered taking action on its own. The group is threatening to arm its members so that they can fight back against the government.

The change of strategy by some Syrians to support an armed struggle marks a dangerous turning point that could further escalate the conflict between the protesters and the government of President Bashar al-Assad. 

Already the idea has been met with criticism from other protesters.

A rival protest group, the Local Coordinating Committees, rejected the plan even though it said it understood the desire to fight. 

“We find it unacceptable politically, nationally and ethically,” it said in a statement. 

“Militarizing the revolution would minimize popular support and participation in the revolution.”

Success would be far from guaranteed. Syria’s regime so far has shown remarkable resilience.

While Gaddafi's regime began to crumble within days of the uprising, the government in Damascus appears to be just as intact as it was towards the beginning of the revolution.

There have been no high-level military defections, and Syria’s diplomats remain loyal to the president. The government also retains control of the entire country, while in Libya, whole cities quickly fell into rebel hands.

A week ago, the protests across Syria were called the "Friday of patience and determination."

But as their patience runs out, the peaceful experiment may come to an end.