video transcript

Video obtained from a social media website purports to show a massive explosion at a government building in the north Syrian city of Idlib. Official media said government forces had cleared "armed terrorists" from the city, which is near the Turkish border. Turkey says over twelve hundred refugees have crossed into the country in the last 48 hours - mostly women and children. Refugees are processed by authorities before being taken to nearby camps. Another video taken from a social media site - purportedly shot in Homs, but which Reuters cannot independently verify - shows a group of men trying to retrieve a body lying in the street whilst gunfire rings out. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said three soldiers were killed in Homs on Friday, along with 45 civilians in Idlib. Turkey is considering setting up a security zone along its Syrian border, and has called on all Turkish citizens in Syria to return home as soon as possible. Nick Rowlands, Reuters.