More than 100,000 Syrians fled their country last month, a sharp acceleration of the exodus prompted by 18 months of conflict, the United Nations said Tuesday, September 4, The New York Times reported. The refugee flood coincided with a marked increase in the carnage in Syria, as President Bashar Assad’s government unleashed its air force against towns and neighborhoods across the country where his opponents have found support. Calling the humanitarian crisis “grave and deteriorating,” Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations secretary general, said Tuesday at a meeting of the General Assembly focused on Syria that the conflict had taken “a particularly brutal turn” in August. He urged the international community to do more to end the fighting and to address the dire needs of civilians fleeing the carnage.