At least 50 ‘massacred’ in Syrian village

Syrian troops backed by pro-government gunmen swept into Bayda, a village in the mountains outside the city of Banias, and killed men, women and children and torched homes, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

The Observatory documented the names of at least 50 dead, but said as many as 100 might have been killed. The Observatory, which relies on a network of activists on the ground, cited witnesses as saying that some of the victims were killed with knives or blunt objects and that dozens of villagers were missing.

In a statement, the opposition umbrella group, the Syrian National Coalition, said: “Reports now confirm a large-scale massacre in Bayda. Initial reports confirm that Assad’s forces were directly involved” in the violence in the area.

“It is time for the world to intervene and put an end to the grievous crimes of the Assad regime,” the Cairo-based opposition group said, urging the international community to act and protect Syrian civilians.

In a video the Observatory sent to the media, at least seven men and boys wearing civilian clothes are seen lying in pools of blood in front of a house.

The video appears genuine and consistent with reporting from the area.

Syrian troops were still in Bayda village yesterday, conducting house to house searches, said Rami Abdul Rahman, the Observatory’s director. He added that phone and internet service to the village was cut and the area remained under regime control, making it impossible to verify the final death toll.

State media did not report on the events in the village in its daily round-up of army activities.