ISTANBUL — Eighty-five Syrian soldiers, including one general and at least 14 lower-ranking officers, fled into southern Turkey’s Hatay Province on Monday, Turkish news agencies reported. It was one of the largest mass military defections since the Syrian conflict began 16 months ago.

A Turkish broadcaster, TRT Haber, said the defectors entered the town of Reyhanli as part of a group of 293 Syrian refugees ‘‘fleeing atrocities in Syria.’’