A video that appears to show a Syrian rebel cutting out and
eating the heart of a dead government soldier has been posted online by Syrian Government.
The unverified clip, posted by a pro-government campaign group, claims to show a man - believed to be Abu Sakkar, the well-known founder of Homs' Farouq Brigade - standing over the uniformed corpse in a ditch while ranting against President Bashar al Assad.
Using a knife, the man hacks open the torso and removes two organs before holding them up to the camera and declaring: 'I swear to God we will eat your hearts and your livers, you soldiers of Bashar the dog.' He then raises one to his mouth and takes a bite.
It comes as David Cameron warned today he may still sanction military intervention in the war-torn nation amid growing evidence that Assad is using chemical weapons against his own people.
The video, posted on YouTube by and billed as proof of a war crime, is the latest installment of a propaganda war that is growing fast behind the scenes of this bloody conflict.
Last month, a photograph was released by a pro-Assad group based in Lebanon that appeared to show a young rebel fighter barbecuing the severed head of a government soldier.
Experts say such images demonstrate that the battlefield has spread from rubble-strewn streets and war-churned fields to the internet as both sides vie to control their public image and discredit that of their opposition.
Meanwhile, human rights groups say it is emblematic of a civil war that has rapidly descended into sectarian hatred and revenge killings.
In the most recent video, Sakkar tells the camera: 'I swear to God we will eat your hearts and your livers, you soldiers of Bashar the dog,'
His rant is greeted by offscreen cheers of his comrades shouting 'Allahu akbar (God is great)'.
Peter Bouckaert of Human Rights Watch said that he had seen an original, unedited copy of the video and that Abu Sakkar's identity had been confirmed by rebel sources in Homs and by images of him in other videos wearing the same black jacket as in the latest clip and with the same rings on his fingers.
'The mutilation of the bodies of enemies is a war crime. But the even more serious issue is the very rapid descent into sectarian rhetoric and violence,' said Bouckaert.
He said that in the unedited version of the film, Abu Sakkar instructs his men to 'slaughter the Alawites and take their hearts out to eat them', before biting into the heart.
Abu Sakkar has been seen in previous videos firing rockets at Lebanese Shi'ite villages on the border and posing with the body of a soldier purportedly from the Lebanese Shi'ite militant Hezbollah group, which is helping Assad's forces.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Monday he wasn't ruling out taking tougher action against Syria over growing evidence it was using chemical weapons, saying he planned to raise the matter with U.S. President Barack Obama.
eating the heart of a dead government soldier has been posted online by Syrian Government.
The unverified clip, posted by a pro-government campaign group, claims to show a man - believed to be Abu Sakkar, the well-known founder of Homs' Farouq Brigade - standing over the uniformed corpse in a ditch while ranting against President Bashar al Assad.
Using a knife, the man hacks open the torso and removes two organs before holding them up to the camera and declaring: 'I swear to God we will eat your hearts and your livers, you soldiers of Bashar the dog.' He then raises one to his mouth and takes a bite.
It comes as David Cameron warned today he may still sanction military intervention in the war-torn nation amid growing evidence that Assad is using chemical weapons against his own people.
The video, posted on YouTube by and billed as proof of a war crime, is the latest installment of a propaganda war that is growing fast behind the scenes of this bloody conflict.
Last month, a photograph was released by a pro-Assad group based in Lebanon that appeared to show a young rebel fighter barbecuing the severed head of a government soldier.
Experts say such images demonstrate that the battlefield has spread from rubble-strewn streets and war-churned fields to the internet as both sides vie to control their public image and discredit that of their opposition.
Meanwhile, human rights groups say it is emblematic of a civil war that has rapidly descended into sectarian hatred and revenge killings.
In the most recent video, Sakkar tells the camera: 'I swear to God we will eat your hearts and your livers, you soldiers of Bashar the dog,'
His rant is greeted by offscreen cheers of his comrades shouting 'Allahu akbar (God is great)'.
Peter Bouckaert of Human Rights Watch said that he had seen an original, unedited copy of the video and that Abu Sakkar's identity had been confirmed by rebel sources in Homs and by images of him in other videos wearing the same black jacket as in the latest clip and with the same rings on his fingers.
'The mutilation of the bodies of enemies is a war crime. But the even more serious issue is the very rapid descent into sectarian rhetoric and violence,' said Bouckaert.
He said that in the unedited version of the film, Abu Sakkar instructs his men to 'slaughter the Alawites and take their hearts out to eat them', before biting into the heart.
Abu Sakkar has been seen in previous videos firing rockets at Lebanese Shi'ite villages on the border and posing with the body of a soldier purportedly from the Lebanese Shi'ite militant Hezbollah group, which is helping Assad's forces.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Monday he wasn't ruling out taking tougher action against Syria over growing evidence it was using chemical weapons, saying he planned to raise the matter with U.S. President Barack Obama.
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