Syrian authorities announced Friday the recovery of 75 additional bodies from a mass grave discovered in the town of al-Ataybah, near the capital Damascus, bringing the total number of bodies exhumed since Thursday to 175.

Local media reported that civilians first uncovered the site on Thursday, prompting emergency and disaster management teams to launch search operations.

Relatives of missing persons and victims, allegedly killed by the ousted regime of Bashar al-Assad, also joined the recovery efforts. Authorities said operations at the site remain ongoing.