Following the Houla massacre of 25 May 2012, in which 108 people were summarily executed, and the subsequent Free Syrian Army (FSA) ultimatum to the Syrian Ba'athist government, the ceasefire practically collapsed as the FSA began nationwide offensives against government troops. On 1 June 2012, President Bashar al-Assad vowed to crush the anti-government uprising. On 12 June 2012, the UN for the first time officially proclaimed Syria to be in a state of civil war. The conflict began moving into the two largest cities, Aleppo and Damascus.