Heavy U.S.-Led Raids on IS Syria Stronghold Kill Dozens
A U.S.-led coalition has carried out some of its heaviest air strikes yet on the Islamic State group's de facto Syrian capital, killing more than 30 people, including six civilians.
The U.S.-led coalition said it carried out 18 air strikes against IS' de facto Syrian capital of Raqa, destroying vehicles and bridges.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the raids killed at least 30 people, among them six civilians including a child.
The U.S.-led coalition said the strikes were some of its heaviest since it began bombing the IS in Syria in September last year.
"The coalition conducted multiple air strikes in northern Syria to deny Daesh's freedom to maneuver," coalition chief of staff Brigadier General Kevin Killea said in a statement.
"These strikes provide the forces on the ground the opportunity to act decisively against Daesh."
- IS bombs kill 11 -
The raids came after IS released a video Saturday showing boys and teenagers killing 25 Syrian soldiers in the ancient amphitheater in the city of Palmyra.
The execution-style murders had been reported earlier, in the days after IS seized the city from government forces on May 21, but the video was the first evidence of the killings.
Palmyra's ancient ruins are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and there has been concern IS might seek to destroy its heritage, as it has done elsewhere in Syria and Iraq.
In northwestern Syria, the Observatory said at least 11 regime forces were killed in a double car bomb attack on a checkpoint in the city of Hasakeh.
State television had reported the attack, saying it was near a power station but giving no toll.
IS launched a new assault against Hasakeh last month, seizing control of two districts from government forces, which share security responsibility in the city with Kurdish fighters.
The jihadists have been forced back in some areas, but fighting has continued.
More than 230,000 people have been killed in Syria since anti-government protests erupted in March 2011, precipitating a civil war pitting pro-regime forces, rebels and jihadist groups against each other.
Source: Agence France Presse
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