The Syrian government encouraged refugees to return to Jisr al-Shughour Wednesday Damascus - AFP A new mass grave was found in the flashpoint northern town of Jisr al-Shughur, Syrian state television said Wednesday, days after authorities reported the massacre of 120 policemen by armed gangs. According to the  latest report the grave contains the bodies of security forces killed \"by armed terrorist groups in Jisr al-Shughur.\"
Jisr al-Shughur has been the focus of military operations since Friday, following what the authorities said was the massacre of 120 policemen by \"armed gangs\" in the town earlier last week.
Syrian troops on Sunday battled with \"armed gangs\" in Jisr Al-Shughur and \"army divisions... purged the state hospital of armed groups,\" state television reported.
State news agency SANA reported on Sunday that a mass grave containing the bodies of security agents had been found in Jisr al-Shughur.
\"Armed groups had mutilated the corpses which were removed from the mass grave,\" SANA added without specifying the number of bodies found.
Rights activists say those killed are unarmed protesters and deny a massacre in Jisr al-Shughur, saying bloodshed erupted during a mutiny by soldiers who refused to fire on the town\'s residents.