NEW : some 70,000 killed in fighting this week , rebel group says . Hafez al-Assad blames `` foreign powers '' for civil war . Embattled president says he will not give up . The brutal civil war claimed more than 6,000 lives in March alone -- making it the deadliest month since the conflict began , the opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported this week . Afghanistan 's civil war has claimed 83 lives .
NEW : some 70,000 killed in fighting this week , rebel group says . Hafez al-Assad blames `` foreign powers '' for civil war . Embattled president says he will not give up . Afghanistan 's civil war has claimed 83 lives .