Latest Syria killings draw international ire

Latest Syria killings draw international ire

clip from article: Syrian troops have killed 111 people in one of the deadliest incidents since the uprising against President Bashar Assad's regime began in March, activists said Wednesday.

Only on msnbc.com
Tax fraud claimed in Huguette Clark estate
8 US soldiers charged with death of fellow GI
Why the GOP won’t win this tax fight
Alarm over Manning defense team strategy
Politics trump hunger in N.Korea
Christmas wish: Little listeria victim is home
Oops. Housing crash deeper than we thought

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the killings occurred in the town of Kfar Owaid in the northwestern province of Idlib Tuesday.

"It was an organized massacre. The troops surrounded people, then killed them," said Rami Abdul-Rahman, head of the organization.

The killings were reported a day before Arab League observers were due to visit Syria to monitor pledges by Assad's government to withdraw troops from besieged areas.

The White House said it was "deeply disturbed" by Tuesday's attack, the State Department stepped up its travel warning, France called the deaths a "murderous spiral," and the Arab League reminded the Assad regime of its responsibilities to protect its civilians.

In a statement, the rights organization said government forces surrounded about 150 local residents and shot them with bullets and tank shells for more than five hours.

"Some women tried to break the siege but in vain," it said. "The security forces arrested a number of young people from their homes, shackled them [and] executed them," it added.[read more at link]