UN Says At Least 3,500 Killed In Syrian Crackdown

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad greets the crowd during a visit to Raqqa on November 6.

The UN human rights office says at least 3,500 people are reported to have been killed in Syria since a crackdown on antigovernment protests began in mid-March.

Ravina Shamdasani, a spokeswoman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the tally is a conservative figure based on "credible sources on the ground," though the agency itself has no one posted in the country.

She said more than 60 people were reported to have been killed by military and security forces since President Bashar al-Assad's government signed a peace plan sponsored by the Arab League on November 2.

The death toll included at least 19 people who were reported killed on the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha on November 6.

compiled from agency reports