Syrian Free Army holed up in Aleppo
Syrian Free Army holed up in AleppoReuters

The bodies of at least 79 victims of an execution-style slaughter were discovered Saturday in a town near Damascus.

Many were young men, according to opposition activists, who said the victims appeared to have been murdered by Syrian government troops.

They were found in apartment buildings near a mosque in the southwestern Damascus suburb of Daraya, bringing the death toll there to 149, activists said.

The Daraya Coordination Committee activists' group said in a statement that among those found were eight members of the al-Qasaa family. Three children, their father and mother, and three other relatives all had gunshot wounds to the head.

A group of 36 bodies of young men were found in one building, together with several badly wounded people who could not be evacuated to hospitals because the Syrian Army had taken over all the medical facilities in the area.

In another building, another 12 bodies were found. Most were shot execution style, according to an activist in Daraya who said the bodies had wounds in the face, head and neck.

The Syrian Army has been shelling and bombarding the town for the past three days. Most of the dead were civilians, according to opposition sources. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimated that some 300 people have died in the Syrian Army assault on Daraya and nearby areas.