SYRIA MILITANTS KILL OVER DOZEN CIVILIANS IN AL-HASAKAH

Damascus, 30 Rajab 1435/30 May 2014 (MINA) – Foreign-backed Takfiri militants in Syria have killed over a dozen civilians in the Arab country’s northeastern province of al-Hasakah.

According to the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, militants from the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) shot dead 15 civilians near the town of Ras al-Ayn on Thursday, Press Tv quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

The UK-based group, which relies on a network of spies working for the foreign-backed opposition, added that at least seven children were among the victims.

Takfiri groups have recently stepped up their fatal attacks against Syrians in several cities and towns as the Arab country is preparing to hold an important presidential election on June 3.

Damascus has insisted that it would hold the presidential poll despite the foreign-backed militancy.

Meanwhile, Syrian army helicopters reportedly bombed militant positions in al-Shaar, a neighborhood of Aleppo, leaving two people dead. On Wednesday, Syrian military forces continued operations against militants across the country, inflicting more losses on the foreign-backed armed groups.

During the operations, army units destroyed a militant weapon and ammunition cache in Huraytan in the northern province of Aleppo, and killed all the armed militants in the area, the official SANA news agency reported. Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since March 2011.

Over 160,000 people have reportedly been killed and millions displaced due to the violence fueled by the foreign-backed militants. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are supporting the militants operating inside Syria. (T/P012/E01)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)