The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says pro-government forces killed 40 people in cold blood on Wednesday in the town of al-Dhiyabia.

Activists posted video on the Internet showing dozens of bloodied corpses from the slaughter they say the government carried out in the town, which sits on outskirts of Damascus.

However, many activists dispute the death count from Wednesday's massacre to be as high as 107.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights believes that over 30-thousand people have been killed since antigovernment protests began in Syria in March last year.