- The video shows the corpse of a little girl lying among other bodies
- Security forces executed wiped out several families, residents say
- The activists had a tough time making their way out of Douma
Beirut, Lebanon (CNN) -- The corpses lay strewn in the restive Syrian city of Douma, all slain in what residents there call a government-backed "massacre."
The scene in the aftermath of the assault, punctuated by images of grief-stricken people and blood-covered pavement, was recorded last month by opposition activists who braved the wrath of Syrian security and slipped into the suburban Damascus city to bear witness to the tumult with their cameras.
The three-man media team moved about the pockmarked urban battleground in shadows and whispers. Edging step-by-step and block-by-block, they hugged buildings' walls to avoid catching the eyes of rooftop snipers. But they would pick up the pace amid bursts of gunfire.
That was at the end of June. The intense bombardment of Douma by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces in the days that followed trapped the activists for more than a week, with government forces blocking the routes out of town and shelling forcing them to take shelter.
Supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad rally on April 1 in Istanbul, Turkey, as delegates from dozens of countries gather to push for ways to end the deadly violence in Syria. The United Nations estimates more than 10,000 people have been killed since the beginning of the crisis in March 2011. The conflict is now being labeled a civil war by the International Committee of the Red Cross. 
Syrians in Damascus protest in the street on March 25, 2011, after clashes with government forces in Daraa left several dead. 
Syrian youths wave national flags while army troops drive out of Daraa on May 5, 2011. During a week-long military lockdown of the town, dozens of people were reportedly killed in what activists described as "indiscriminate" shelling on the city. 
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks to the media in Washington on August 18, 2011. Clinton said U.S. sanctions on Syrian oil "strike at the heart of the Syrian regime." 
Arab foreign ministers attend an emergency meeting at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo on October 16, 2011, to discuss the crisis in Syria. 
A Syrian man who was wounded in a suicide attack rests at a hospital in Damascus on December 23, 2011. Suicide bombers hit two security service bases in the Syrian capital, killing dozens of people. 
A day after the twin suicide bombings, Syrian mourners pray over the coffins of the 44 people killed during a mass funeral in Damascus. 
Syrian refugees walk across a field before crossing into Turkey on March 14. International mediator Kofi Annan called for an immediate halt to the killing of civilians in Syria as he arrived in Turkey for talks on the crisis. 
A Free Syrian Army rebel mounts his steed in the Al-Shatouria village near the Turkish border in northwestern Syria on March 16, a year after the uprising began. The Free Syrian Army is an armed opposition group made up largely of military defectors. 
Syrian rebel fighters man a checkpoint leading into the town of Taftanaz in the rebel stronghold province of Idlib on March 20. 
Thousands of Syrians wave their national flag and hold portraits of President Bashar al-Assad and Lebanon's Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, right, during a rally to show support for their leader on March 29 in Damascus. 
A U.N. observer speaks with Syrian rebels and civilians in the village of Azzara on May 4, days before the country's parlianemtary polls were held against a backdrop of unrest. 
Members of the Free Syrian Army return to Qusayr on May 12 after an attack on Syrian regime forces in the village of Nizareer, near the Lebanese border in Homs. 
People gather at a mass burial on May 26 for victims reportedly killed during an artillery barrage from Syrian forces in Houla. The attack left at least 108 people dead, including nearly 50 children, according to the United Nations. 
Syria's President Bashar al-Assad waves as he arrives for a speech to Syria's parliament in Damascus on June 3. The embattled president denied that government forces were behind the "outrageous" massacre in Houla. 
A Syrian woman sits with her grandson outside a damaged building after attacks in the Syrian village of Treimsa on July 13. More than 200 people were massacred in the town, according to activists. 
The death toll in Syria on July 12 reached 287, making it the bloodiest day in Syria since the uprising began. As it has done consistently, Syrian state television blamed "armed terrorist groups" for the killings. 
A Syrian demonstrator holds an opposition flag during a protest in Damascus on July 2. There have been increasing reports of violence in the Syrian capital. 
Photos: Showdown in Syria 
Gunfire interrupts Syrian state TV report 
A Syrian ambassador defects 
Defector: Syria coordinated with al Qaeda The footage -- just delivered to reporters in Lebanon -- also highlights the resolve of a guerrilla force of activist-journalists: brave souls who've risked their lives since March 2011 to record examples of the regime's actions.
The carnage is the latest example of what activists say is relentless abuse against civilians by al-Assad's security apparatus over the past 16 months.
Douma, a major city in the province of Rif Damashq -- meaning Damascus countryside, which includes the suburbs that surround the capital city -- has been consumed by bloodshed since the protests last year morphed into a nationwide uprising against the regime.
These latest sights, recorded by the activists at a dingy building in the dark of night, bear witness to the grim conflict in cities, towns and villages across Syria.
The people seen dead in the scene were among 45 people killed in an attack. Residents say Syrian security forces raiding a building in search of weapons wiped out members of several families.
One image shows a little girl sprawled among the dead, many of the bodies covered in bloody funeral sheets.
A man points to a body and says "he was executed, a civilian." He points to a second corpse and says, "This is his cousin, shot because he tried to save him."
Another man said security forces ordered men and women into two rooms and executed them, one after the other.
CNN cannot independently verify these accounts.
But the aftermath rings true for Syrians caught in the maelstrom of what is now called a civil war and the sight has become routine in areas where resolute residents have not buckled under to regime soldiers and their militia allies.
Residents prepared the bodies for burial by unceremoniously wrapping up the dead in funeral sheets and removing them from the building where they were found.
It is only now that the activists who filmed the grisly scenes were able to get the footage to Lebanon.
The risk, the activists say, is worth it. Syrians activists say the world needs to get one more glimpse of the horror and despair engulfing Syria.
