Human rights observatory: 140,000 people killed since start of Syrian revolution

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said Saturday 140,000 people were killed since the start of the revolution in Syria in March 2011 until yesterday.SOHR said in a statement it documented the murder of the 140,000 people, noting the "most bloody" period was during the Geneva II negotiations between the Syrian government and opposition.It added that over 18,000 people have been detained by the regime forces and their fate was unknown, while more than 7,000 government troops and their proxy militiamen were believed to be held captives by Al-Qaeda-affiliated groups like the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant (ISIL) and Al-Nusra Front.SOHR said the actual number of militants killed from the ISIL, Al-Nusra Front and non-Syrian Islamic groups might be over 60,000. It called on the international community to refer the file of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Syria to the International Court of Justice or forming special tribunals to prosecute the killers of the Syrian people.The Syrian observatory also called on the countries with influence on the Syrian government to press for a ceasefire before seeking a political solution.