Over 100 Dead in Army Capture of Syria Town

More than 100 people have been found dead in a town near the Syrian capital of Damascus after a five-day operation to retake the town by regime troops, a watchdog said on Monday.

"There are 101 martyrs who have been identified in Jdaidet al-Fadl, which was taken completely by the army on Sunday. The victims are 10 women, three children and 88 men, including 24 rebels," Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told Agence France Presse.

On Sunday, the group said it has confirmed the deaths of at least 80 people killed during shelling on the area, fighting and in summary executions.

The organization distributed several gruesome videos shot by activists showing bodies that bore signs of torture or mutilation.

An activist in Damascus said Sunday that all communication, water and electricity had been cut off in Jdaidet al-Fadl, adding that some of the corpses were "found in one of the hospitals" in the town.

She said some of the bodies had been beaten, and others burnt.

Since last year, the army has tried to root out rebels positioned southwest and east of Damascus, in a bid to secure the capital.