Syrian refugees continue to flee across the Turkish border to escape violence, as world powers amplify their outrage over the Damascus regime's tough crackdown on peaceful demonstrators.
The number of Syrian refugees now in Turkey stands at 8,904, Turkish emergency officials said on Thursday.
This increase comes as Turkish government officials, including Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, met with a special Syrian envoy to help stem the growing tide of refugees.
Violence in the country and an offensive in and around the town of Jisr al-Shugur spurred thousands to hightail it to the border region, and Turkish officials are worried that the crisis could deteriorate and destabilize the area.
Davutoglu met on Thursday with Syrian envoy Hasan Turkmani, who also sat down on Wednesday with Erdogan.
World outrage boils over Syrian crisis
The foreign minister briefed the media in Ankara about the border crisis, the Turkish meeting with the Syrian envoy, and his visit with Syrian refugees on Wednesday in the Turkish city of Hatay.
"It was a meeting that was very comprehensive in which everything was openly discussed, based on mutual confidence and a joint understanding of sharing matters," Davutoglu said of the meeting with Turkmani and his delegation.
Calling for a "strong, stable and prosperous Syria, Davutoglu urged the timely development of a "comprehensive reform process" there and an end to the discord in Syria.
"I hope the positive scenario of introducing reforms and eliminating violence will take place. I don't even want to think about the other scenario," he said.
He said Turkey decided to provide humanitarian help to Syrians massed on the Syrian side of the border. Many of the Syrians who have fled their homes haven't gone to Turkey and have been displaced in terrible conditions near the border.
"Turkey will never refrain from any help for Syria," Davutoglu said.
On Wednesday, the U.N. human rights office called for "a thorough probe into the allegations of widespread abuses committed by Syrian authorities during their violent crackdown."
"The most egregious reports concern the use of live ammunition against unarmed civilians, including from snipers positioned on rooftops of public buildings, and the deployment of tanks in areas densely populated by civilians," according to a preliminary report prepared by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
"As of mid-June, the number of those killed during such incidents is believed to have exceeded 1,100 persons, many of them unarmed civilians; among them were women and children," it said, according to a U.N. statement.
World outrage boils over Syrian crisis
The OHCHR said reports indicate than up to 10,000 people have been detained over three months, and it has received information that security forces "have perpetrated acts of torture and other cruel and inhuman treatment against detainees, resulting in death in custody in some cases."
The report, which covers the period from March 15 to Wednesday, is based on data from U.N. agencies. human rights activists, a small number of victims and witnesses, and various groups. The OHCHR said it had to rely on these sources because it hasn't been able to get staffers "on the ground in Syria."
There also have been reports that the rights of people to freedom "of assembly, expression, and movement" and to get food and health care have been violated.
"The material currently before the High Commissioner is a matter of grave concern and reflects a dire human rights situation in the Syrian Arab Republic.
World outrage boils over Syrian crisis
The alleged breaches of the most fundamental rights on such a broad scale require thorough investigation and, with respect to the perpetrators, full accountability," the report said.
Navi Pillay, the high commissioner for human rights, urged Syria "to grant access to the country for the fact-finding mission established by the U.N.Human Rights Council."
More than 50 nations issued a tough statement on human rights abuses in Syria at the U.N. Human Rights Council, on Wednesday and the U.S. State Department underscored the thrust of the message on Thursday.
"The international community has been shocked by the horrific reports of torture and arbitrary arrests, and widespread use of violence against peaceful protesters.
The Human Rights Council has spoken again and used its voice to pressure the Syrian authorities to stop these human rights violations. The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms the use of force by the Syrian government against peaceful demonstrators. This outrageous use of violence to quell protests must come to an end now," according to State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.
World outrage boils over Syrian crisis
The State Department called on Syria to allow the high commissioner's office to pursue its mission.
"The international community again calls on the Syrian authorities to establish credible, independent, and transparent investigations into these abuses, accountability for those who perpetrated them, and to allow unfettered access to the U.N. High Commissioner's mission to investigate the many and varied allegations."
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