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Syrian security forces are reportedly widening an operation in the north of the country aimed at cracking down on anti-government protests amid reports of defections from the army's ranks.
Troops pushed towards the town of Maarat al-Numaan after detaining hundreds of people in a sweep through villages near Jisr al-Shughur, the Reuters news agency reported on Tuesday, citing residents who fled the area.
Refugees have poured across the Syrian border into neighboring Turkey to escape the government's operation in Jisr al-Shughur, the site of a military takeover on Sunday.
More than 8,000 Syrians have so far crossed the border with Turkey to escape the violence, and an estimated 10,000 more are waiting for the opportunity to cross.
Syrian state television said army units fought "armed groups" on Sunday, but residents and activists said troops had clashed with mutinous soldiers defending the town alongside residents.
'Soldiers uneasy'
Discussing the reported divisions within the Syrian army on Tuesday, Anas al-Abdah, chairman of the opposition group, Movement for Justice and Development, told Al Jazeera: "Many in the Syrian army feel uneasy about the systematic policy of targeting civilians and attacking peaceful demonstrators that is being imposed on them by the political and military leadership.
"Many defected from the army in order to protect the civilians. This happened previously in Daraa and Homs, and now, more evidently, it is happening in Jisr al-Shughur.
Al-Abdah said that almost a week ago, military officers began to notice that people from a paramilitary militia called Shabiha, which is alleged to be working with the Syrian security forces, had started wearing military uniform.
"This caused huge resentment within the army because these paramilitary militias were committing atrocities against civilians," he said.
"We have strong evidence that indicates that the state security branch in Jisr al-Shughur defected from the main branch in Damascus, and they were severe clashes between the state security and the military intelligence in Jisr.
"This in itself is a very worrying development for the Syrian regime."
Al Jazeera's Anita McNaught, in Guvecci on the Turkey-Syria border, spoke to Syrian refugees inside the camp in Turkey on Monday.
One of them said he saw two military helicopters hovering over Jisr al-Shughur and heard reports of indiscriminate shooting.
Another Syrian gave this account after Al Jazeera smuggled a camera into the refugee camp: "We were besieged in Jisr yesterday.
"We couldn't leave. They shot at everyone, I was shot in the chest, My cousin, who was with me, died.
"They cut our electricity and water. We were left with nothing, that is why we came to the Turkey border."
PHOTO CAPTION
A picture provided by Syrian anti-regime militants shows tanks deployed in the eastern Syrian city of Deir al-Zor.
Al-Jazeera
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