Syrian army kills at least 95 in Hama: activist

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More than 90 people were killed today as the Syrian military launched an attack on the flashpoint protest city of Hama on the eve of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, a human rights activist said.

Ammar Qorabi, who heads the National Organisation for Human Rights, said army attacks across Syria have killed at least 121 people and wounded dozens more.

Another activist put the overall toll at 123.

"The army and security forces launched an attack on Hama and opened fire on civilians, killing 95 people," Qorabi said, adding he had a list of names of 62 of the dead.

He added that '19 people were killed in Deir Ezzor in the east, six more died in Harak in the south and one in Al-Bukamal," also in the east.

According to Qorabi, 'snipers took up positions on rooftops' in Deir Ezzor where 'most of those shot were hit in the head and the neck'.

Another rights group reported that 47 people were killed in and around Hama, including two shot dead by security forces in the village of Suran outside the city, bringing the day's overall death toll to 123.

Dozens were also wounded when security forces shot at 'residents who took to the streets to protest when they heard the news about Hama," said Rami Abdel Rahman of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

He quoted a Hama hospital source as saying: "The number of those wounded is huge and hospitals cannot cope, particularly because we lack the adequate equipment."