Airstrikes Kill 28 Civilians in IDP Camp

At least 28 civilians were killed in airstrikes targeting al-Kammouna camp for internally displaced civilians near Sarmada in Idlib province, northwestern Syria, following the implementation of a 48-hour truce in Aleppo.

The U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the 28 civilian casualties included women and children, and some 50 others were wounded.

Sarmada is controlled by al-Qaida’s Syria branch al-Nusra Front.

While the Syrian government has not yet made a statement about the airstrikes, Mamun al-Khatib, director of the Aleppo-based Shahba Press news agency, said that the missiles were fired by a regime aircraft, AFP reported.

“Two missiles fell near the camp causing people to panic and two more fell inside, where a dozen tents caught fire,” he said.

The strikes came following a 48-hour truce announced by the regime and rebels in opposition-held areas of Aleppo, which have seen continuous violence for the past two weeks.

U.S. officials said it had not yet been confirmed whether the strikes were carried out by the regime, but saw them as “totally in keeping” with its past methods.

“There’s absolutely no justification for attacks on civilians in Syria, but especially on what appears to have been a refugee camp,” said State Department spokesman Mark Toner.

The U.N. under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs Stephen O’Brien demanded an immediate investigation into the attack.

“If this obscene attack is found to be a deliberate targeting of a civilian structure, it could amount to a war crime,” he said.

More Than 70 Killed as Rebels Capture Village Near Aleppo: Monitor

More than 70 people died in a battle on Friday morning between a coalition of Syrian rebel groups and pro-government forces, which ended in with a rebel capture of the strategic village of Khan Touman in Aleppo.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that 43 rebel militants and 30 pro-government militants were killed during the battle.

Bahaa al-Halaby, a media activist from opposition-held areas of Aleppo, said the insurgents took control of Khan Touman around 7 a.m.

The coalition, formed earlier this week following the violent attacks on opposition-held areas in Aleppo, consists of hardline Islamist groups like Jaish al-Fatah and al-Nusra Front, as well as non-jihadist groups affiliated with the Free Syrian Army.

ISIS Captures Main Gas Field in the East

Militants fighting with the Islamic State group (ISIS) seized a strategic gas field in eastern Syria near the Palmyra desert area on Thursday.

The move marks the first gain for the militant group since Russian-backed Syrian forces recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra in March, Reuters reported.

The news was first announced by Amaq, an ISIS-affiliated news agency, that said the group captured the Shaer gas field and its surrounding facility, killing at least 30 Syrian soldiers and seizing weaponry, including tanks and missiles.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed the news, and said the militants managed to seize the area despite aerial bombardment to push them back.

ISIS militants have captured the gas field and nearby gas facilities in Homs on several occasions, but lost them to the regime forces in 2014.

Recommended Reads

• Reuters: Why the Battle for Aleppo Could Decide the Syria War
• VICE: War Equals Profit in the Wild West of the Syria-Jordan DMZ
• The Atlantic: Is the U.S. War Against ISIS Illegal?
• Time: 4 Reasons the War Against ISIS Is Working—and 1 Reason It’s Not
• Al-Monitor: Why Syria’s Kurds Can’t Count on Long-Term Commitment From Russia