Syria's Assad regime tortured thousands, activists say

(Middle East Bulletin)- At least 5,396 people were tortured under the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, a human rights group has reported, since the beginning of the Syrian civil war.

The London-based Syrian Network for Human Rights, a non-partisan organization which tracks human rights violations in the conflict in that country, made the report, adding that it included 94 children and 32 women.

Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011. The U.N. in August said that more than 191,000 people are believed to have been killed in the bitter conflict so far.