BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian activists said Monday that pro-government gunmen have killed at least 16 people — including children — in a rebel stronghold recaptured by the government in the embattled central city of Homs.

The state media in Damascus, which often ignores claims by activists, confirmed killings in Homs but blamed “armed terrorists” as it frequently calls those behind the uprising.

Fresh from stamping out rebel centers of resistance in Homs, government forces are pressing on with new offensives in other parts of central and northern Syria. The reports of the killings add to concerns that the hundreds of civilian deaths caused by the fighting will be compounded by reprisals against opposition supporters in the recaptured towns and neighborhoods.