BEIRUT (AP) — Syria’s state-run media today criticized decisions by the U.S. and other nations to expel the country’s diplomats, describing the moves as “unprecedented hysteria” and warning they might deal a fatal blow to an international peace plan.

The harsh rhetoric came as Syrian forces bombarded rebel-held areas in the same province where a recent assault killed 108 people, activists said.

Survivors of the Houla massacre blamed pro-regime gunmen for at least some of the carnage as the killings reverberated inside Syria and beyond, further isolating President Bashar Assad and embarrassing his few remaining allies. The Syrian government denied its troops were behind the killings and blamed “armed terrorists.”

Damascus had said it would conclude its own investigation into the Houla deaths by today but it was not clear if the findings would be made public.

The Houla killings prompted Western nations to expel Syrian diplomats in a coordinated protest.

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