BEIRUT: More than 200 Syrians, mostly civilians, were massacred in a village in the rebellious Hama region when it was bombarded by helicopter gunships and tanks and then stormed by army.

State media said "terrorist groups" had carried out a massacre to raise tensions ahead of a UN Security Council meeting on the Syria observer mission. Pro-government Shabiha militia later went in on foot and carried out execution-style killings, they said.

The Revolution Leadership Council of Hama told that the Sunni Muslim village of Taramseh was subjected to a barrage from helicopter gunships and tanks before pro-government Alawite militiamen swept in and killed victims one by one.

“More than 220 people fell today in Taramseh. They died from bombardment by tanks and helicopters, artillery shelling and summary executions,” the regional opposition group said in a statement.

Syrian state television said three security personnel had been killed in fighting in Taramseh and it accused “armed terrorist groups” of committing a massacre there. Since the uprising against Bashar al-Assad's regime began in March 2011 some 16,000 people are thought to have been killed.

Fadi Sameh, an opposition activist from Taramseh, said he had left the town before the reported killing spree but was in touch with residents. “Every family in the town seems to have members killed. We have names of men, women and children from countless families,” he said, adding many of the bodies were taken to a local mosque.

Activists say government forces surrounded the village on Thursday morning and heavily bombarded it for several hours, killing many people. However individual reports of casualties often cannot be independently verified, as Syria severely restricts journalists' freedom of movement.