Syria's Foreign Ministry said Monday that the weekend massacre in Hula, in which dozens of people were killed, was committed by Islamic radicals. Syria made the claim in a letter to the UN Security Council, which condemned Syria for the massacre.

“The Syrian army was on the defensive against Islamic terrorists,” the letter said. The letter added that groups of attackers used knives against Syrian soldier. The fact that they carried knives proved that they were Islamic radicals, the letter said.