MONTREAL - A year after the people of Syria began revolting against the Assad regime, the violence is showing no sign of letting up.

Military forces continue to use heavy weaponry against people relying on smuggled weapons or on material salvaged by defectors.

This past weekend the heightened emotions between pro and anti-Assad protesters degenerated into a violent brawl inside a bus station.

Walid, 17, and a friend were on their way home from an anti-Bashar Al Assad demonstration in downtown Montreal when they encountered a group of protesters out in support of the dictatorship.

Walid's friend waved his flag for Syrian independence.

"There was people that got annoyed and then we started fighting," said Walid.

Jack Mansour was one of the pro-Assad demonstrators.

He said his group was trying to defuse the situation before it turned ugly.

"We told them just to leave the place. We don't want to fight and then they started to continue," said Mansour.

The war of words ended with Walid being being stabbed. He needed 18 stitches to close the wound.

Montreal Police say when they arrived at the park there were over 100 demonstrators, making it difficult to pin down a suspect..

"When you've got two groups involved into a fight, there's probably someone that started something somewhere, so that's what we are investigating at this point," said Constable Raphael Bergeron.

This all comes as the uprising in Syria escalates.

The Syrian Canadian Council has denounced the violence, both overseas and in Montreal.

"It's completely unacceptable," said Faisal Al Azem. "The sad part is that it is mirroring the exact behaviour in Syria.

"They need to know that we are in Montreal, we are in Canada. This is not Homs."

Al Azem believes the altercation in Montreal could develop into a growing problem.

"If they feel that this is carte blanche whenever someone goes on a pro-democracy, Anti-Assad protest, if he's going to end up in the hospital then we have a very serious problem," said Al Azem.

Walid says for now at least, being stabbed has turned him off from getting involved in politics.