72 more, mostly civilians, killed in Syria
14 Jun 2012 2:37 AM GMT
At least 72 people, the majority of them civilians, were killed across Syria, a watchdog has said, adding that a mother and her five children kidnapped earlier this week were also found dead. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Tuesday said the northern province of Aleppo had seen some of the worst violence as regime forces pounded several villages killing 19 people, including 13 women and children.
‘The corpses of a woman and her five children kidnapped on Monday night were found in the village of Qustal Mukhtar’ in Aleppo province, the Britain-based group said. It added that among Tuesday's dead nationwide were 24 regime troops, including an officer.
In the central province of Homs, where several districts are under siege, 18 people were killed, including in rebel bastions Khalidiyeh, Rastan and Qusayr, the monitoring group said.
In Damascus province, a man from Homs died while he was being tortured by the security forces, the Observatory added. And in eastern Deir Ezzor, 13 people died after regime forces pounded Jbeibla on Monday night, the Observatory said on Wednesday.
The Syrian National Council, the main opposition coalition, denounced the shelling by government forces as ‘savage’ and accused the regime of ‘blindly slaughtering’ civilians, including women and children.
The escalation in violence came as UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous warned that the country was in civil war. According to the Observatory, more than 14,100 people have died in Syria since the revolt against President Bashar al-Assad's regime broke out in March last year.
Meanwhile, UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous said Syria is now in a full-scale civil war, as the United States accused Russia of supplying the regime of Bashar al-Assad with attack helicopters. The UN peacekeeping chief told reporters that there was an escalation in violence in Syria as Assad’s forces seek to regain control of ‘large chunks of territory’.
Asked whether he believed Syria is in a civil war, he said: ‘Yes I think we can say that. I think there is a massive increase in the level of violence, so massive indeed that in a way it indicates some change of nature.’
‘The corpses of a woman and her five children kidnapped on Monday night were found in the village of Qustal Mukhtar’ in Aleppo province, the Britain-based group said. It added that among Tuesday's dead nationwide were 24 regime troops, including an officer.
In the central province of Homs, where several districts are under siege, 18 people were killed, including in rebel bastions Khalidiyeh, Rastan and Qusayr, the monitoring group said.
In Damascus province, a man from Homs died while he was being tortured by the security forces, the Observatory added. And in eastern Deir Ezzor, 13 people died after regime forces pounded Jbeibla on Monday night, the Observatory said on Wednesday.
The Syrian National Council, the main opposition coalition, denounced the shelling by government forces as ‘savage’ and accused the regime of ‘blindly slaughtering’ civilians, including women and children.
The escalation in violence came as UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous warned that the country was in civil war. According to the Observatory, more than 14,100 people have died in Syria since the revolt against President Bashar al-Assad's regime broke out in March last year.
Meanwhile, UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous said Syria is now in a full-scale civil war, as the United States accused Russia of supplying the regime of Bashar al-Assad with attack helicopters. The UN peacekeeping chief told reporters that there was an escalation in violence in Syria as Assad’s forces seek to regain control of ‘large chunks of territory’.
Asked whether he believed Syria is in a civil war, he said: ‘Yes I think we can say that. I think there is a massive increase in the level of violence, so massive indeed that in a way it indicates some change of nature.’
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