U.N. Calls for Political Transition in Syria

But even as the vote was being tallied, members recognized that it, like every other diplomatic initiative, would probably fail to stem the violence or coax out a political solution. While the resolution passed 107 to 12, it fell far short of the 133 votes in support of a similar resolution last August. The 59 abstentions reflected the widespread sentiment that the new initiative might not help push both parties toward new peace talks in Geneva proposed by the United States and Russia.

At the very beginning of the debate, Vuk Jeremic, the president of the General Assembly, raised the official United Nations death toll in Syria to more than 80,000, compared with 60,000 at the beginning of the year. “At least 80,000 have perished since the start of the hostilities, with most of these casualties believed to be civilians,” he said.

Indeed, on the ground in Syria, the rising death count only added to the sense that a diplomatic solution was growing less likely.

Opposition activists reported on Wednesday that pro-government militias had killed more than 30 people in a village in the central and hotly contested province of Homs, in what they feared was an episode similar to the summary executions of families in and around the coastal city of Baniyas earlier this month.

Pro-government militias entered the village of Soda and killed entire families after rebels attacked a government checkpoint there, the activists said, adding that 13 people from the Rahim and Khalass families had been identified, but that further identifications were difficult because of continuing fighting.

The accounts could not be immediately confirmed because of government restrictions and security concerns, and the government news media did not immediately offer a version of events. But the activist accounts, from the Local Coordinating Committees and the Shaam News Network, reflected a sense of growing fear and anger over lurid and sectarian-tinged violence in recent weeks that threatens international efforts to broker a settlement and raises concerns that tit-for-tat killings will spread.

Some rebel groups declared they were bent on revenge for the Baniyas killings. Ahrar al-Sham, an Islamist brigade, posted a recruitment video that showed pictures of dead children said to be victims of the Baniyas killings, with a soundtrack of men chanting: “Kill them! Kill them!”

In the northeastern city of Raqqa, masked rebels filmed themselves executing three men they said were government soldiers. Videos posted online showed the blindfolded prisoners seated in the middle of a square as people gathered to watch.

Their captors, many wearing black masks that revealed only their eyes, brandished rifles as their leader read a statement condemning the men.

“In revenge for the free people of Baniyas and Homs and following the word of God, ‘Whoever assaults you, assault them in the same way that they assaulted you,’ ” the leader said, quoting the Koran.

The state news agency, SANA, said that life was back to normal in the Baniyas area after the army “restored security and stability and eradicated the armed terrorist groups from the area.” But residents said they were still terrified after what they said were attacks by government militias that killed hundreds, including women and small children. The government has not offered an explanation for the deaths of civilians, reported by residents and human rights observers and documented in videos.

Internet and telephone communications were cut off in Syria for the second time this month. The government said it was because of technical difficulties, but monitoring companies have said the outages appear to be government-induced.

In New York, Rosemary DiCarlo, an American envoy to the United Nations, tried to put the best face on the nonbinding resolution, saying, “Adopting this resolution will send a clear message that the political solution we all seek is the best way to end the suffering of the people of Syria.”

The Obama administration co-sponsored the measure, which was drafted by Qatar under Arab League auspices. They turned to the General Assembly because the Security Council has deadlocked on the issue, with Russia and China vetoing three resolutions on the war. Both voted against Wednesday’s measure.

General Assembly resolutions, because they are nonbinding, are considered a kind of global opinion poll designed to bring pressure. There was heavy Western support for the resolution.

Bashar al-Jaafari, the Syrian envoy, accused the Arab League of seeking international legitimacy for arming “terrorists.” “I would like to emphasize to everyone that the real solution to the Syrian crisis, at the end of the day, will only be exclusively a Syrian solution and led by Syrians themselves,” he said.