More than 100 Syrian soldiers killed over the weekend

Rebels told the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) on Monday that more than 100 soldiers were killed in clashes and attacks on security forces’ checkpoints across Syria, including the suburbs of Damascus and Idlib Province.

The observatory said local doctors had confirmed the names of 80 dead Syrian soldiers.

At least 19 soldiers, eight rebels and 19 civilians were killed in violence on Sunday, the watchdog added.

Another 57 soldiers were killed on Saturday, which according to the SOHR was the largest number of fatalities the Syrian military had suffered in a single day since the beginning of unrest in the country last year.

Meanwhile, EU officials are pressing Moscow to harden its line against the Syrian government.

EU President Herman Van Rompuy said on Monday after talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg that Moscow and the European Union must overcome their differences on the crisis in Syria to prevent an all-out civil war.

He also said that both sides agreed the peace plan brokered by the UN- Arab League envoy Kofi Annan was the best way to end months of violence in Syria.

Russia, which along with China has vetoed two UN Security Council resolutions against Syria, has repeatedly expressed opposition to foreign military intervention in Syria, describing negotiations as the only way to solve the country's crisis.