The death toll from two days of clashes between Syrian security forces and loyalists of ousted President Bashar Assad and revenge killings that followed has risen to more than 1,000, a war monitoring group said Saturday,

A human rights group characterized the killings as executions and massacres, carried out in revenge against the Alawite community, which made up Assad's longtime base of support.

Hundreds of civilians have been killed in cold blood in Syria's coastal region as the country is roiled by its worst violence since the overthrow of long-time dictator Bashar al-Assad around three months ago,