Accusations that government troops were involved in the massacre of more than 100 civilians, including dozens of small children, in the Syrian town of Houla are “baseless,” President Bashar al-Assad told lawmakers Sunday.

“Truthfully, even monsters don’t commit what we saw, especially in the Houla massacre,” he said. “The criminals who committed these massacres were not criminals for an hour or a day, they were criminals by nature, so we need to prepare ourselves and defend our people.”

Speaking before the newly-elected People’s Assembly on Sunday, al-Assad decried what he called the “terrorists” and “conspiracy” against Syria.

“At this time, we are facing a war from abroad,” al-Assad said in his first public speech since January. “Dealing with it is different from dealing with people from inside.”

His speech came a week after the U.N. Security Council condemned the Houla massacre, with members casting blame on government forces for the deaths.

Al-Assad’s remarks stand in stark contrast to what the opposition and many world leaders have said for more than a year — that al-Assad’s forces, not “terrorists,” are behind a sustained slaughter stemming from the regime’s crackdown on dissidents.

As the president spoke, heavy shelling rained on the anti-government bastion of Homs, the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria said. At the same time, at least five people were killed in Homs, Aleppo and Hama, the group said.

Opposition activists also reported seeing a large military convoy of about 45 trucks carrying tanks, armored personnel carriers and soldiers heading toward Deir Ezzor during al-Assad’s speech.

Al-Assad insisted “the battle is forced upon us,” but promised amnesty for those who stop fighting immediately.

“I encourage all of those who are hesitant to drop their weapons at once, and the government will not seek revenge now or later,” he said in his 70-minute speech. “We forgave others who stood against us in the past.”

READ MORE: CNN