( CNN ) -- The bloodied bodies lay stuffed and tangled in the back of a pickup like garbage . Men lifted the bodies one by one and hurled from them from a bridge into a river below as cursing filled the air . `` Brother of a whore ! '' they shouted as the corpses splashed and the water ran red . `` Animals ! '' `` Dogs ! '' At one point , a voice asks mockingly , `` This is a soldier ? '' Report : Syrian army stretched amid uprising . This scene , said to have been shot in Syria , surfaced in a video on YouTube , where images of anti-government ferment and violence have emerged consistently since unrest started in the nation in mid-March . CNN could not verify the authenticity of the video , but it illustrates the hostility of the nearly five-month-old conflict across Syria between regime forces and anti-government protesters . It is not clear who the victims were . Were they among the 1,600 civilians or 370 security forces slain in the unrest ? The posting on the video says the bodies are anti-government forces being dumped by thugs loyal to President Bashar al-Assad . Syrian state TV has aired the video , saying that the bodies are being dumped by anti-government protesters . A banner said the incident took place in Hama over the Orontes River . Razan Zaitouneh , a Syrian activist , said activists doubt the incident could have happened at the Hama location because the river is dry at this time of year . But one prominent anti-government activist , who asked not to be named because of the dangers that could arise from the release of the information , told CNN the state TV account was correct . The bodies are those of Syrian secret police killed by Syrian fighters from Iraq who have joined the anti-government fight , said the activist , who gets information about the goings-on in Syria from an extensive network of informants . That same activist stressed that the antagonists are not representative of the protest movement . Violent fringe elements have appeared during the Syrian tumult . One study last month from the International Crisis Group said some anti-government elements have taken up arms . However , that report said , `` the vast majority of casualties have been peaceful protesters , and the vast majority of the violence has been perpetrated by the security services . '' The activist said the emergence of this video is a double-edged sword for protesters . On the one hand , the peaceful demonstrators need to become aware of the existence of fringe elements , he said . This would encourage more people to reject both the regime and these types of attacks and maintain the aims of peaceful protest , he said . At the same time , he added , the incident gives credence to the Syrian government 's assertion that it is targeting `` armed gangs . '' Such violence , he said , could cause the international community to hesitate in continuing its mounting pressure against the Syrian regime .
YouTube video shows men tossing bodies into a river . The incident is said to have occurred in Hama . Comment: Syrian state TV airs video , claiming it 's of rebels dumping loyalists .