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Opposition Forces Say At Least 100 Killed By Assad Regime In Syria

Al Arabiya is calling it another "massacre." Quoting the opposition, they report that "scores of dead bodies were scattered in houses and in farms in al-Tremsa, while more than 150 dead bodies have been piled up in the al-Tremsa mosque."

The exact number is still unclear. The AP and the BBC are reporting more than 100 have been killed, while the Syrian Local Coordination Committees are reporting 287.

The AFP is saying 100 and offers this description of the attack on the central region of Hama:

"Government troops bombarded the village using tanks and helicopters," [Syrian Observatory for Human Rights] chief Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP by telephone, putting the death toll at more than 100."

According to Al Jazeera, the Revolution Leadership Council of Hama pinned the blame for the attack on the Bashar Assad regime, saying the town was first shelled and then "stormed by Shabbiha militia."

Meanwhile, attempts in the United Nations to increase pressure on Assad seemed stalled. The U.S., France and Germany proposed sanctions against Assad but, the AFP reports, Russia declared a "red line" saying they would veto any such attempt.

Syrian activists put the death toll at 17,000 since the uprising started 16 months ago.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.