Ukraine has said it is ready to accept an immediate 30-day ceasefire with Russia proposed by the US, after a day of talks between the two countries in Saudi Arabia.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he would present the offer to Russia and that "the ball is in their court".

Ukraine's President Volodomyr Zelensky said it was now up to the US to convince Russia to agree to the "positive" proposal.

Tuesday's talks in Jeddah were the first official meeting between the two countries since the extraordinary clash between Zelensky and US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office.

In a joint statement, the US also said it would immediately restart intelligence sharing and security assistance to Ukraine, which Washington had suspended after the unprecedented meeting.

"Both delegations agreed to name their negotiating teams and immediately begin negotiations toward an enduring peace that provides for Ukraine's long-term security," the US-Ukraine statement said.

Rubio told a press conference in Jeddah late on Tuesday that he hoped Russia would accept the proposal.

Ukraine was "ready to stop shooting and start talking," he said, and if Russia rejected the offer "then we'll unfortunately know what the impediment is to peace here".

"Today we made an offer that the Ukrainians have accepted, which is to enter into a ceasefire and into immediate negotiations," he said.

"We'll take this offer now to the Russians and we hope they'll say yes to peace. The ball is now in their court," he added.

The offer of a 30-day ceasefire goes beyond Zelensky's proposal for a partial truce in the sea and sky.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022. Moscow currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory.

Asked by a reporter if the move meant Trump and Zelensky's relationship was "back on track," Rubio said he hoped it was "peace" that was back on track.

"This is not Mean Girls, this is not some episode of some television show" he said.

"Today people will die in this war, they died yesterday and - sadly - unless there's a ceasefire, they will die tomorrow."

The US and Ukrainian teams met after overnight drone attacks killed at least three people in Moscow - which Russia said showed Ukraine had rejected using diplomacy to end the war.

Trump and Zelensky have also agreed to finalise "as soon as possible" a critical minerals deal, the joint statement said.

Ukraine has offered to grant the US access to its rare earth mineral reserves in exchange for US security guarantees - but this was derailed by the White House row.

Rubio said the deal had not been the subject of Tuesday's talks, but had been negotiated with Ukrainian and US treasuries.

The US delegation in Jeddah also included US national security advisor Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who is due to travel to Russia in the coming days according to the BBC's US partner CBS, quoting a person familiar with the planning.

Achieving a swift end to the war in Ukraine has been a key pledge for the US president.

He has placed increasing pressure on Zelensky to accept a ceasefire, without offering the immediate security guarantees insisted upon by the Ukrainian president.

On Friday, Trump issued a rare threat of further sanctions against Moscow in a push for a deal. Russia is already heavily sanctioned by the US over the war.

Trump said he was contemplating the move because "Russia is absolutely 'pounding' Ukraine on the battlefield right now".

Meanwhile, the war continued on the ground on Tuesday.

Three men were killed in the Moscow region in what was described as the largest drone attack on the Russian capital since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine.

A further 18 people, including three children, were injured, health officials told Russian media.

The Russian defence ministry said 337 drones were intercepted over Russia and 91 of them were shot down over the Moscow region.

Ukrainian officials reported Russian drone attacks on the capital Kyiv and several other regions.

Ukraine's air force said it had shot down 79 of 126 drones launched by Russia, as well as an Iskander-M ballistic missile.

It was not immediately clear whether there were any casualties.

As US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says, "the ball is now in Russia's court." This is a significant moment.

The joint statement from the US and Ukraine, after a long day of talks in Jeddah, contains several key lines, perhaps none more important than this: "The United States will communicate to Russia that Russian reciprocity is the key to achieving peace."

We've heard a lot, in recent weeks, about what Donald Trump expects from Ukraine and what sort of blunt instruments the White House is prepared to use to bend Kyiv to its will.

Now, it seems, it's time for Russia's intentions to be tested, in public.

Trump's dealings with Vladimir Putin have so far been shrouded in uncertainty, with no obvious sign of pressure to balance that being exerted on Volodymyr Zelensky.

Tuesday's joint US-Ukrainian statement doesn't imply that Trump has suddenly changed his tune towards Zelensky. Theirs is a thorny relationship, born of many years of mutual mistrust.

But the ugly cloud of acrimony generated by that fractious Oval Office encounter 11 days ago may start to dissipate as the real business of peace-making gets under way.

With the immediate resumption of US intelligence sharing and security assistance to Ukraine, after a suspension that lasted mere days, it's Russia that may now be feeling the pressure.

Entire families, including women and children, were killed during the recent violence in Syria's coastal region, the UN human rights office says.

A spokesman told reporters that the UN had so far verified the killing of 111 civilians since last Thursday, but that the actual figure was believed to be significantly higher.

Many of the cases were summary executions and appeared to have been carried out on a sectarian basis, with predominantly Alawite areas targeted in particular, he added.

Gunmen supporting the Sunni Islamist-led government have been accused of carrying out revenge killings following a deadly ambush on a security patrol by loyalists of president Bashar al-Assad, who is an Alawite.

A monitoring group has reported that more than 1,200 civilians, most of them Alawites, have been killed in Latakia, Tatous, Hama and Homs provinces.

The UN has welcomed the promise by Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa to form an independent investigative committee and to hold those responsible to account.

The violence was the worst in Syria since Sharaa led the rebel offensive that overthrew Assad in December, ending 13 years of civil war in which more than 600,000 people were killed.

• Syria says operation against Assad loyalists over after deadly violence
• Syrians describe terror as Alawite families killed in their homes
• Syria leader vows to hunt down those responsible for bloodshed

Syria's north-west Mediterranean coast is the heartland of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shia Islam to which many of the former Assad regime's political and military elite belonged.

Last week, security forces launched an operation in the region in response to a growing insurgency by Assad loyalists.

The violence escalated on Thursday, after 13 security personnel were killed in an ambush by gunmen in the coastal town of Jableh.

Security forces responded by sending reinforcements to the region, who were joined by armed groups and individuals supporting the government.

They stormed many Alawite towns and villages across the region, where residents said they carried out revenge killings and looted homes and shops.

A spokesperson for the UN human rights office, Thameen Al-Kheetan, said on Tuesday that reports were continuing to emerge of the "distressing scale of the violence".

He said the UN, using strict verification methods, had so far documented the killings of 90 male civilians, 18 women, two girls and one boy.

Initial reports indicated that the perpetrators were members of armed groups supporting the security forces and elements associated with the Assad regime, he added.

"In a number of extremely disturbing instances, entire families - including women, children and individuals hors de combat - were killed, with predominantly Alawite cities and villages targeted in particular," he said, referring to combatants who have been captured, expressed an intention to surrender, or are incapacitated.

"According to many testimonies collected by our office, perpetrators raided houses, asking residents whether they were Alawite or Sunni before proceeding to either kill or spare them accordingly. Some survivors told us that many men were shot dead in front of their families."

Assad loyalists also raided several hospitals in Latakia, Tartous and Baniyas, according to Mr Kheetan. They clashed with security forces, reportedly resulting in dozens of civilian casualties, including patients and medics, was well as damage to the hospitals.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, said its civilian death toll had risen to 1,225, after another 132 people were reported killed on Tuesday, including 62 in the town of Baniyas. About 230 security personnel and 250 pro-Assad fighters have also been killed, according to its network of sources.

Mr Kheetan said the UN human rights chief urged Syrian authorities to carry out prompt, thorough, independent and impartial investigations.

"All those found responsible for violations must be held to account, regardless of their affiliation, in line with international law norms and standards. Victims and their families have the right to truth, justice and reparations," he stressed.

A spokesman for the new investigative committee set up by the government said it was already "gathering and reviewing evidence" and would present a report in 30 days.

"No-one is above the law. The committee will relay all the results to the entity that launched it, the presidency, and the judiciary," Yasser Farhan told a news conference.

The state-run Sana news agency also reported that four people had been arrested over "bloody violations against civilians" in a coastal village after they were identified in videos.

Meanwhile, residents of the region said the situation appeared calm on Tuesday, with only sporadic gunfire heard overnight.

A man who fled the town of Baniyas three days ago told the BBC that he had managed to get back to his home to check on it because security forces had set up checkpoints in the neighbourhood to prevent further killings and looting.

The man, who asked to remain anonymous, also said the bodies which had been lying on the streets of Baniyas last week were no longer there.

The Syrian Red Crescent, with the help of security forces, was said to be recovering bodies and burying them in mass graves in the town's cemetery.

However, most families have not returned home, because they are traumatised by what happened and worried about their safety, amid reports of continued killings and looting.

Many sought refuge at the Russian-controlled Hmeimim airbase outside the city of Latakia, sheltered in local schools or fled to rural areas.

Others crossed into neighbouring Lebanon, where a woman told the BBC that armed men had attacked her house in rural Hama two months ago and killed men from her family.

"My nephews were 11 and 12 years old. They rounded them up and lined up all the other young Alawite men," Hind said.

"One of them asked his friend about our religion. He said, 'They are Alawites,' so he pointed his gun and killed all the men in front of him."

"They see us as guilty just because our president was Alawite. But the truth is we are the poorest. Our young men joined the military only to be taken to fight and to be killed."

A young man named Wissam said he no longer trusted the government and security forces.

"They're all the same - armed and with covered faces. They have privileges that no-one else has. They do whatever they want," he claimed.

The government of Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro is expected to lose a vote of confidence on Tuesday, pitching the country into its third general election in barely three years.

A majority of MPs are expected to vote against him, toppling his right-of-centre minority government.

While Portugal's President, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, is not obliged to dissolve the assembly, he has made clear that he will if the government loses Tuesday's vote, with fresh elections likely in May.

The confidence motion was tabled by the government itself, after the opposition Socialists announced plans for a parliamentary inquiry into Montenegro's business dealings.

A company called Spinumviva, set up by Luís Montenegro, continued to receive sizeable sums from clients he had previously secured, even after he was elected Social Democratic Party (PSD) president and leader of the opposition in 2022, and had transferred ownership to his wife and two sons.

The legality of the transfer to his wife was questioned by the opposition, given that the marriage is one in which assets are jointly held; the couple have since made their sons sole owners.

But questions remain about the sources of the company's income – which until a few days ago included €4,500 (£3,800) a month from hotels and casino group Solverde, whose gambling concession is up for review – as well as the identity of other clients, which the prime minister has declined to reveal, and the services Spinumviva offers.

The prime minister, a trained lawyer, says the firm provides consultancy services relating to data privacy laws, outsourcing work to external experts – given that his wife is a childminder, one son a student and the other a new graduate.

The Bar Association is now looking into whether the company is illicitly offering services that only lawyers may offer.

In recent days, Montenegro's cabinet has approved a battery of spending and other measures, in what is being seen as a bid to show that it is working hard for the country.

The situation might seem to offer ideal conditions for far-right Chega, the third-largest party in parliament, to renew its attacks on corruption in politics.

Chega also benefited from the resignation of Montenegro's Socialist predecessor, António Costa, who is now president of the European Council. His name had come up in a criminal investigation into government contracts, although he has never been made a suspect.

But in recent weeks, Chega has been hit by scandals of its own, with three of its MPs accused of crimes, including one charged with stealing suitcases at Lisbon airport.

Until recently, Luís Montenegro's coalition with the conservative People's Party was still ahead of the Socialists in the opinion polls, having narrowly won the 2024 general election a year ago.

However, they are now trailing the Socialists, led by Pedro Nuno Santos, who served as a minister under António Costa.

None of the major parties appear keen on a snap election – not least because they fear voters will not be enthusiastic at having to choose a new government when the current one has been in office for less than a year – and the timing is poor in geopolitical terms.

However, Portugal appears set on an unswerving path for May elections.

Not only has the prime minister chosen to appeal to voters rather than face an inquiry, a stance described as "cowardly" by the leader of the opposition.

But Pedro Nuno Santos has long pledged not to vote in favour of any government confidence motion.

The captain of a cargo ship has been arrested after it collided with an oil tanker in the North Sea.

The Portuguese-flagged Solong and the US-registered tanker Stena Immaculate, crashed off the East Yorkshire coast, at about 10:00 GMT on Monday.

Humberside Police said the 59-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter following searches for a missing crew member of the Solong.

Smoke is continuing to billow from the Solong, but Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said both ships were expected to remain afloat.

German firm Ernest Russ, which owns the Solong, confirmed to the BBC that the man arrested is the master of the ship.

It said he, along with the rest of the crew, were assisting the investigation.

A crew member from the cargo ship was still missing and presumed dead after a search and rescue operation ended on Monday evening, according to Transport Minister Mike Kane.

Whitehall sources have told the BBC there were Russians and Filipinos among the crew of the Solong.

The BBC understands all 23 crew on board the Stena Immaculate are Americans. They are all in Grimsby and are likely to be repatriated in due course.

Police said they had begun a criminal investigation into the cause of the collision and was working with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch was also undertaking a parallel preliminary assessment to establish the causes of the crash, police said.

HM Coastguard confirmed 36 people had been taken safely to shore.

Det Ch Supt Craig Nicholson said: "Humberside Police have taken primacy for the investigation of any potential criminal offences which arise from the collision between the two vessels."

He said the arrested man was in custody.

"Following inquiries undertaken by my team, we have arrested a 59-year-old man on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter in connection with the collision.

"This follows the conclusion of search operations by HM Coastguard for the missing crew member of the Solong.

"Our thoughts are with the family of the missing crew member, and I have appointed family liaison officers to make contact and provide support to the family."

Smoke is continuing to billow from Solong.

The ship's German owner, Ernst Russ, said it was supporting the missing crew member's family.

It also confirmed there were no containers on board carrying sodium cyanide, as had been initially feared.

"There are four empty containers that have previously contained the hazardous chemical and these containers will continue to be monitored," the firm said.

Crowley, the maritime company managing Stena Immaculate, said the vessel was struck by Solong while anchored off the coast of Hull, causing "multiple explosions" on board and an unknown quantity of jet fuel to be released.

The firm said Stena Immaculate was carrying 220,000 barrels of jet fuel in 16 segregated cargo tanks, at least one of which was ruptured when it was struck.

Graham Stuart, MP for Beverley and Holderness, said officials had told him there was no evidence so far of any of the heavy engine oil leaking from either ship, or pollution in the water or the air.

Earlier, Kane told the House of Commons the "working assumption" was that one crew member from the cargo ship had died.

Alexander said she had met with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and been informed that early indications suggest both vessels are now expected to stay afloat.

She added Solong could be "towed away from the shore, and salvage operations can get under way".

Stena Immaculate was operating as part of the US government's tanker security programme, a group of commercial vessels that can be contracted to carry fuel for the military when needed, according to Crowley.

It had been anchored while waiting for a berth to become available at the Port of Killingholme on the River Humber, the company said.

A man who killed his ex-girlfriend, her sister and her mother in a crossbow attack motivated by "self pity" has been jailed for life and told he would never be released from prison.

Kyle Clifford raped his former partner Louise Hunt, 25, then used a crossbow to shoot both her and her sister Hannah, 28, having already fatally stabbed their mother, 61-year-old Carol, at the family home in Bushey, Hertfordshire, in July last year.

At Cambridge Crown Court, the judge Mr Justice Bennathan handed the 26-year-old three life sentences with three whole life orders.

The women were the wife and daughters of BBC horse racing commentator John Hunt who, in his victim impact statement, described Clifford as a "psychopath" who was able to disguise himself as "an ordinary human being".

A tearful Mr Hunt read out his full statement in court taking brief moments to regain his composure.

He concluded by saying: "The screams of Hell, Kyle, I can hear them faintly now. The red carpet will come out for you."

In her victim statement, his other daughter Amy told the court Clifford was a "monster" and what he did "to my baby sister is nothing short of demonic".

Hannah's boyfriend, Alex Klein, also told the court Clifford was a "coward" who would suffer a "miserable fate" for eternity.

The judge said the statements had been "difficult to listen to".

Although sentences are usually passed at the end of a judge's remarks, Mr Justice Bennathan opened his speech by saying he would impose the whole life orders to spare family and friends "any delay or suspense".

The judge addressed Clifford directly, despite the fact that the killer was not in court to hear the verdict.

"You first killed [Louise and Hannah's] mother, Carol, who even on that day showed you nothing but kindness in the moments before you attacked her," he said.

"You raped and killed Louise, who had been as gentle as she could in ending her relationship with you after your arrogance and anger proved too much for her to stand.

"Then you murdered Hannah Hunt, who had done nothing to harm you other than protect her sister."

Mr Justice Bennathan described Clifford as a man "soaked in self-pity" who held women "in utter contempt".

Of his victims, the judge added: "They showed a gentle heroism of which you, Kyle Clifford, could only dream."

He then went into fuller details of his sentencing considerations.

Clifford was also handed further sentences to be served concurrently:

• 20 years for raping Louise Hunt
• eight years for falsely imprisoning her
• a year for possession of an offensive weapon, namely a crossbow
• a year for possession of an offensive weapon, namely a knife

After concluding his remarks the judge thanked police and the Hunt family, paying tribute to "the astonishing dignity and courage" of the murdered women's family and friends.

Mr Hunt and his daughter hugged as the sentencing was passed.

After the murders in July, a manhunt ended when Clifford was found in a cemetery in Enfield, north London, where he had shot and paralysed himself with a crossbow.

Outside the court Det Ch Insp Nick Gardner, senior investigating officer in the case, welcomed the whole-life orders but added "it will never make up for the loss of Louise, Hannah and Carol – three vibrant women in the prime of their lives".

"Clifford has again shown himself to be a coward. Clifford armed himself with a crossbow and knife in order to attack three innocent women," he said.

"They resisted him bravely, with Hannah raising the alarm, which ultimately helped police catch Clifford.

"Then despite overwhelming evidence, Clifford denied raping Louise which meant the Hunt family had to sit through days of distressing evidence."

Lisa Kiff, a senior prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said Clifford was a murderer and rapist "who, at every turn, has attempted to escape the gravity of his actions".

She explained CPS took the decision to proceed with the rape charge to ensure "full justice was secured for Louise, and to ensure that Clifford could be sentenced for the full extent of his offending".

"That decision has been vindicated by his conviction for the rape and by the sentence passed today, as Clifford will never be released from prison," she added.

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The government has said it supports paid bereavement leave for couples who experience a miscarriage.

Business Minister Justin Madders told MPs he "fully accepts" the principle of bereavement leave for pregnancy loss and promised to look at adding the right to the Employment Rights Bill.

Currently employees are eligible for parental bereavement leave if they or their partner have a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy.

Labour MP Sarah Owen, who chairs the Women and Equalities Committee, has been calling for this right to be extended in cases where miscarriages take place before 24 weeks.

Speaking in the House of Commons, Madders said: "Bereavement is not an illness, it's not a holiday and it does need its own special category."

He added: "I am grateful to the work of the Women and Equalities Committee for raising the important issue of miscarriage leave.

"The loss of a baby at any stage is an incredibly difficult personal experience and the inquiry they conducted demonstrated a clear gap in support for those who experience pregnancy loss and need time to recover and grieve."

He said Owen had shown "great bravery" in speaking about the own experience of having a miscarriage.

In 2021, Owen told MPs that after her own miscarriage she felt physically better in a few days but had "all the classic signs" of grieving.

"I could not eat, I could not sleep. I really did not hold much hope that life would ever get brighter," she said.

Owen and her committee have proposed changes to the Employment Rights Bill which would ensure parents bereaved as a result of a pregnancy loss are entitled to two weeks of leave.

During a debate on the bill on Tuesday, Madders said: "We fully accept the principle of bereavement leave for pregnancy loss, as raised in the amendments, and we look forward to further discussions with [Owen] and [peers] as the Bill moves on to its next stages in the Lords."

The bill aims to strengthen workers' rights in areas including unfair dismissals, flexible working and sick pay.

Opening the debate, Madders said it was a "landmark bill" that would "tackle low pay, poor working conditions and poor job security".

Greg Smith, the Conservative shadow business minister, said he backed the government on bereavement leave for pregnancy loss but added that in the "vast majority" of the bill the government had got the balance between the rights employees and employers "wrong".

Smith has proposed several amendments to the bill which would require the government to carry out impact assessments on the measures being introduced.

Former Labour minister Louise Haigh and Lib Dem MP Layla Moran have proposed an amendment which would ban non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in cases of sexual misconduct, abuse, harassment and discrimination in the workplace.

Haigh, who resigned as transport secretary last year, said: "NDAs have a perfectly legitimate use in business to protect commercial confidentiality and trade.

"But they are frequently misused in order to bully people into silence when they have already suffered at work."

Madders said it was "an important issue that warrants further consideration" but did not commit to accepting their amendment.

Stella Creasy, Labour MP for Walthamstow, is trying to amend the bill to provide greater protections for paternity or parental partner leave.

The bill currently gives workers the right to paternity leave from day one of their employment, instead of the current 26 weeks.

Creasy's amendment would compel the government to review paternity and parental partner leave and set out a timeline for implementing any recommendations.

She said the UK was "behind the curve on how we treat dads" compared to other similar countries.

The government has not committed to accepting her amendment, which has strong backing from other Labour MPs.

Entire families, including women and children, were killed during the recent violence in Syria's coastal region, the UN human rights office says.

A spokesman told reporters that the UN had so far verified the killing of 111 civilians since last Thursday, but that the actual figure was believed to be significantly higher.

Many of the cases were summary executions and appeared to have been carried out on a sectarian basis, with predominantly Alawite areas targeted in particular, he added.

Gunmen supporting the Sunni Islamist-led government have been accused of carrying out revenge killings following a deadly ambush on a security patrol by loyalists of president Bashar al-Assad, who is an Alawite.

A monitoring group has reported that more than 1,200 civilians, most of them Alawites, have been killed in Latakia, Tatous, Hama and Homs provinces.

The UN has welcomed the promise by Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa to form an independent investigative committee and to hold those responsible to account.

The violence was the worst in Syria since Sharaa led the rebel offensive that overthrew Assad in December, ending 13 years of civil war in which more than 600,000 people were killed.

• Syria says operation against Assad loyalists over after deadly violence
• Syrians describe terror as Alawite families killed in their homes
• Syria leader vows to hunt down those responsible for bloodshed

Syria's north-west Mediterranean coast is the heartland of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shia Islam to which many of the former Assad regime's political and military elite belonged.

Last week, security forces launched an operation in the region in response to a growing insurgency by Assad loyalists.

The violence escalated on Thursday, after 13 security personnel were killed in an ambush by gunmen in the coastal town of Jableh.

Security forces responded by sending reinforcements to the region, who were joined by armed groups and individuals supporting the government.

They stormed many Alawite towns and villages across the region, where residents said they carried out revenge killings and looted homes and shops.

A spokesperson for the UN human rights office, Thameen Al-Kheetan, said on Tuesday that reports were continuing to emerge of the "distressing scale of the violence".

He said the UN, using strict verification methods, had so far documented the killings of 90 male civilians, 18 women, two girls and one boy.

Initial reports indicated that the perpetrators were members of armed groups supporting the security forces and elements associated with the Assad regime, he added.

"In a number of extremely disturbing instances, entire families - including women, children and individuals hors de combat - were killed, with predominantly Alawite cities and villages targeted in particular," he said, referring to combatants who have been captured, expressed an intention to surrender, or are incapacitated.

"According to many testimonies collected by our office, perpetrators raided houses, asking residents whether they were Alawite or Sunni before proceeding to either kill or spare them accordingly. Some survivors told us that many men were shot dead in front of their families."

Assad loyalists also raided several hospitals in Latakia, Tartous and Baniyas, according to Mr Kheetan. They clashed with security forces, reportedly resulting in dozens of civilian casualties, including patients and medics, was well as damage to the hospitals.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, said its civilian death toll had risen to 1,225, after another 132 people were reported killed on Tuesday, including 62 in the town of Baniyas. About 230 security personnel and 250 pro-Assad fighters have also been killed, according to its network of sources.

Mr Kheetan said the UN human rights chief urged Syrian authorities to carry out prompt, thorough, independent and impartial investigations.

"All those found responsible for violations must be held to account, regardless of their affiliation, in line with international law norms and standards. Victims and their families have the right to truth, justice and reparations," he stressed.

A spokesman for the new investigative committee set up by the government said it was already "gathering and reviewing evidence" and would present a report in 30 days.

"No-one is above the law. The committee will relay all the results to the entity that launched it, the presidency, and the judiciary," Yasser Farhan told a news conference.

The state-run Sana news agency also reported that four people had been arrested over "bloody violations against civilians" in a coastal village after they were identified in videos.

Meanwhile, residents of the region said the situation appeared calm on Tuesday, with only sporadic gunfire heard overnight.

A man who fled the town of Baniyas three days ago told the BBC that he had managed to get back to his home to check on it because security forces had set up checkpoints in the neighbourhood to prevent further killings and looting.

The man, who asked to remain anonymous, also said the bodies which had been lying on the streets of Baniyas last week were no longer there.

The Syrian Red Crescent, with the help of security forces, was said to be recovering bodies and burying them in mass graves in the town's cemetery.

However, most families have not returned home, because they are traumatised by what happened and worried about their safety, amid reports of continued killings and looting.

Many sought refuge at the Russian-controlled Hmeimim airbase outside the city of Latakia, sheltered in local schools or fled to rural areas.

Others crossed into neighbouring Lebanon, where a woman told the BBC that armed men had attacked her house in rural Hama two months ago and killed men from her family.

"My nephews were 11 and 12 years old. They rounded them up and lined up all the other young Alawite men," Hind said.

"One of them asked his friend about our religion. He said, 'They are Alawites,' so he pointed his gun and killed all the men in front of him."

"They see us as guilty just because our president was Alawite. But the truth is we are the poorest. Our young men joined the military only to be taken to fight and to be killed."

A young man named Wissam said he no longer trusted the government and security forces.

"They're all the same - armed and with covered faces. They have privileges that no-one else has. They do whatever they want," he claimed.