Armed groups killed entire families, including women and children, during an outbreak of sectarian violence in Syria last week, the United Nations human rights office said on Tuesday.

A Syrian fact-finding committee investigating sectarian killings during clashes by rival groups during an insurgency by Bashar al-Assad loyalists said on Tuesday that no one was above the law and it would seek the arrest and prosecution of any perpetrators.

Entire families including women and children were killed in Syria's coastal region during a military crackdown against an insurgency by Bashar al-Assad loyalists, the U.N human rights office said on Tuesday.