Gunmen shot dead 11 people, mostly Christians, in central Syria on Saturday, state media and activists said. A witness described what appeared to be a sectarian attack indiscriminately targeting members of the minority.
A resident in the area said that the gunmen randomly opened fire on a street as Christians were celebrating a feast day. He spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
The state-run SANA news agency described the attack as a “massacre” and said that women and children were among the dead.
But activists said that many of those killed were pro-government militiamen manning checkpoints.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that nine of those killed were Christians. It said rebels attacked checkpoints manned by the pro-government National Defence Forces militia, killing five of them. It said the other six were civilians, including two women.
Christians, who make up about 10 per cent of Syria’s population, say they are particularly vulnerable to the violence sweeping the country of 22 million people. They are fearful that Christians will be caught in the crossfire between rival Islamic groups.
