Activists say 8 Syrians killed trying to cross into Turkey

BEIRUT – Activists say at least eight Syrian refugees, including four children, were shot dead while trying to cross into Turkey.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the eight were shot by Turkish border guards while trying to cross from Kherbet al-Jouz in northwestern Syria into Turkey's Hatay province late Saturday.

The Local Coordination Committees, an activist network, put the toll at 11 dead and also blamed Turkish border guards. It says at least one of those trying to cross was from Jarablus, a northern Syrian town under Islamic State control.

Turkish officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

The Syrian war has pushed over 2.7 million refugees into Turkey, according to the U.N. Turkey has tightened security along its border in recent months to prevent further inflows.