<p>The bodies of at least 65 young men, all executed with a single gunshot to the head or neck, were found on Tuesday in a river in Aleppo city, adding to the grim list of massacres committed during Syria’s 22-month conflict.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The gruesome discovery came as international envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi was scheduled to brief the United Nations Security Council in New York.<br /><br />The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 65 bodies were found in the Quweiq River, which separates the Bustan al-Qasr district from Ansari in the southwest of the city, but that the toll could rise significantly.<br />A Free Syrian Army officer at the scene said at least 68 bodies had been recovered and that many more were still being dragged from the water, in a rebel-held area.<br /><br />A senior government security source said many of the victims were from Bustan al-Qasr and had been reported kidnapped earlier. He accused “terrorists,” the standard regime term for people fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad, of the killings and spreading propaganda to deflect responsibility.<br /><br />“It has been confirmed that a number of the victims had been abducted by armed terrorist groups and their families had made repeated attempts to negotiate their releases.<br /><br />An AFP correspondent saw at least 15 bodies on a truck.<br /><br />“My brother disappeared weeks ago when he was crossing (through) the regime-held zone, and we don’t know where he is or what has become of him,” said Mohammed Abdel Aziz, a local resident, as he looked at the mud-covered bodies one by one.</p>
<p>The bodies of at least 65 young men, all executed with a single gunshot to the head or neck, were found on Tuesday in a river in Aleppo city, adding to the grim list of massacres committed during Syria’s 22-month conflict.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The gruesome discovery came as international envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi was scheduled to brief the United Nations Security Council in New York.<br /><br />The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 65 bodies were found in the Quweiq River, which separates the Bustan al-Qasr district from Ansari in the southwest of the city, but that the toll could rise significantly.<br />A Free Syrian Army officer at the scene said at least 68 bodies had been recovered and that many more were still being dragged from the water, in a rebel-held area.<br /><br />A senior government security source said many of the victims were from Bustan al-Qasr and had been reported kidnapped earlier. He accused “terrorists,” the standard regime term for people fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad, of the killings and spreading propaganda to deflect responsibility.<br /><br />“It has been confirmed that a number of the victims had been abducted by armed terrorist groups and their families had made repeated attempts to negotiate their releases.<br /><br />An AFP correspondent saw at least 15 bodies on a truck.<br /><br />“My brother disappeared weeks ago when he was crossing (through) the regime-held zone, and we don’t know where he is or what has become of him,” said Mohammed Abdel Aziz, a local resident, as he looked at the mud-covered bodies one by one.</p>