Two-year Truce Broken in Jayrud After Airstrikes Kill 43

A two-year truce was broken in the town of Jayrud, approximately 35 miles (60km) northeast of Damascus, after government airstrikes resulted in the death of at least 43 civilians, including women, children and medical staff.

Regime forces shelled the town for the first time in two years on Saturday night, in what a rebel spokesman told Al-Jazeera was likely revenge for the death of a regime warplane pilot. The pilot had ejected himself from an aircraft about to crash northeast of Damascus on Friday, and was reportedly captured soon after.

The Jayrud truce had made it a safe haven for internally displaced peoples escaping violence in surrounding areas, and the town is heavily populated with civilians. A number of rebel groups also operate there, including Jaish al-Islam, Ahrar-al Sham and al-Qaida’s Syrian offshoot, Jabhat al-Nusra.

A Free Syrian Army fighter told Reuters that it was Jabhat al-Nusra who had executed the regime’s pilot.

Al-Qaida in Syria Abducts Leader of Western-Backed Rebel Group

Jabhat al-Nusra captured the leader of the Western-backed Jaish al-Tahrir brigade, Mohammad al-Ghabi, and approximately 40 of his men on Saturday night in several raids in northern Syria, Reuters reported.

Jaish al-Tahrir was formed in February as an attempt to unite moderate rebel forces from the Free Syrian Army (FSA) alliance as the so-called Islamic State further advanced near the Turkish border.

Despite sometimes fighting alongside the FSA against ISIS, Jabhat al-Nusra, al-Qaida’s affiliate in Syria, has repeatedly targeted FSA groups backed by the West.

Iranian Leader Rejects Coordinating With U.S. in Syria

Ayatollah Khamenei, supreme leader of Iran, said on Sunday that his country will never work with the U.S. in Syria or in other regional conflicts.

Iran has been supporting the Syrian regime of President Bashar al Assad against rebels, jihadists and ISIS. However, according to Naharnet, Iran said it would refuse to coordinate with the U.S.-led coalition in the fight against the so-called Islamic State.

“Americans are still engaged in hostility against the nation of Iran, be it the Congress or the U.S. administration,” said Khamenei.

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