UN mission chief reports 108 dead in Syrian massacre

UNITED NATIONS: A total of 108 people were killed in a massacre in the Syrian town of Houla, the head of the UN mission in Syria, Major General Robert Mood, told the UN Security Council Sunday, diplomats said.

Another 300 people were injured in the incident, Mood told the Security Council. Syrian authorities have denied responsibility for the killings, which have sparked international outrage and prompted the council meeting.

Mood said the deaths were from shrapnel and gunfire at point-blank range, diplomats said.

On Saturday, Mood -- the head of a UN observer mission deployed under a peace plan brokered by UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan -- warned of civil war after the incident in Houla, which is located in central Homs province.

UN observers had initially counted 92 dead in Houla, 32 of them children.

Mood had on Saturday also called on the Syrian government to cease the use of heavy weapons, and on all parties to cease violence in all its forms.

Source: MOLE