REYHANLI, TURKEY After days of relentless shelling and sniper attacks, thousands of Syrian refugees streamed across the border into Turkey with horrific accounts Friday of mass graves, massacres and burned-out homes.
The latest reports of escalating violence fueled accusations that President Bashar Assad is rushing to stamp out as much of the year-old uprising as he can before a UN-brokered cease-fire next week.
The trigger for the new waves of refugees was an offensive in Idlib province, which borders Turkey and has become increasingly rebellious against the Assad regime.
Activists reported about 100 dead in the villages of Taftanaz and Killi in recent days.
A photograph provided to The Associated Press by a Syrian activist showed at least a dozen corpses wrapped in blankets in what appeared to be a mass grave in Taftanaz. The Associated Press could not verify the authenticity of the photograph, but witnesses also described a mass grave.
http://www.therecord.com/news/world/article/700796--syrian-refugees-describe-mass-graves-massacres-after-fleeing-violence-ahead-of-truce