BEIRUT: An explosion outside an office belonging to an Al-Qaeda-linked group in northwestern Syria on Friday killed at least 11 people and wounded several others, opposition activists said.
The blast comes a week after members of the Al-Qaeda-linked Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, Arabic for Levant Liberation Committee, or HTS, took over control of wide parts of Idlib province and the surrounding countryside after forcing rival insurgents to accept a deal for a civil administration run by HTS in their areas.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and Smart news agency, an activist collective, said the blast occurred on the southern edge of the rebel-held city of Idlib.
The Observatory said 11 people were killed in the blast, including seven HTS members. Smart said 12 people were killed, many of them militants.
In the country’s east, an airstrike in the last area held by Daesh killed at least 20 people.
State news agency SANA said 20 people were killed in the airstrike on the Daesh-held village of Baghouz, while the Observatory said 23 people were killed including 10 IS members.
They both blamed the US-led coalition that has been providing air cover to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in their monthslong offensive to capture the area from extremists near the Iraqi border.
The SDF has intensified its offensive over the past weeks on the Daesh-held area.
Meanwhile in Turkey, President Tayyip Erdogan met with US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham to discuss the situation in Syria as the United States prepares to withdraw troops.
Graham, a prominent voice on foreign affairs in the US, met with Erdogan and other Turkish officials Friday for talks that were also expected to include a proposal for the creation of a “safe zone” in northeast Syria.
The visit comes days after a suicide bombing, claimed by Daesh, killed two US service members and two American civilians in the northeastern town of Manbij.
Graham has said he is concerned that US President Donald Trump’s troop withdrawal announcement had emboldened Daesh militants and created dangerous uncertainty for American allies.
The Pentagon identified three of the four Americans killed in the suicide bomb attack in Manbij — Army Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jonathan R. Farmer, 37, of Boynton Beach, Florida, who was based at Fort Campbell, Kentucky; Navy Chief Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) Shannon M. Kent, 35, from upstate New York and based at Fort Meade, Maryland; and a civilian, Scott A. Wirtz, from St. Louis.
The Pentagon hasn’t identified the fourth casualty, a civilian contractor.
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Explosion in north Syria targets Al-Qaeda gunmen, kills 11
Explosion in north Syria targets Al-Qaeda gunmen, kills 11
- The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and Smart news agency, an activist collective, said the blast occurred on the southern edge of the rebel-held city of Idlib
- The Observatory said 11 people were killed in the blast, including seven HTS members. Smart said 12 people were killed, many of them militants
UN force says Israel fired near peacekeepers in south Lebanon
- UNIFIL reports two incidents of gunfire hitting 50 meters away from its patrols
- The force has been working with Lebanon’s army to support a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah
BEIRUT: The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said gunfire from an Israeli position hit close to its peacekeepers twice on Friday, reporting no casualties but decrying a “concerning trend.”
UNIFIL has repeatedly reported Israeli fire near or toward its personnel in recent months, and last week said an Israeli attack near one of its positions lightly wounded a peacekeeper.
Personnel patrolling in south Lebanon on Friday “reported 15 rounds of small arms fire that struck no more than 50 meters away from them,” a UNIFIL statement said.
Shortly afterwards, “peacekeepers in a second patrol in the same area reported approximately 100 rounds of machine-gun fire struck approximately 50 meters from them,” it added, reporting no damage or injuries.
“Peacekeepers assessed that the fire came from an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) position south of the Blue Line in both cases,” the statement said, referring to the de facto border, and “sent a ‘stop fire’ request through its liaison channels.”
It said UNIFIL had informed the Israeli army about the peacekeepers’ activities in advance.
“Incidents like these are happening on a too-regular basis, and becoming a concerning trend,” the statement said.
“We reiterate our call to the IDF to cease aggressive behavior and attacks on or near peacekeepers working for peace and stability along the Blue Line.”
UNIFIL has acted as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon for decades, and recently has been working with Lebanon’s army to support a year-old ceasefire between Israel and militant group Hezbollah.
The force on Friday noted that “attacks on or near peacekeepers are serious violations” of a 2006 UN Security Council resolution that formed the basis of the current ceasefire.
Under the November 2024 truce, Israel was to withdraw its forces from south Lebanon, but it has kept them at five areas it deems strategic and carries out regular strikes on Lebanon, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah sites and operatives.
Under heavy US pressure and fears of expanded Israeli strikes, Lebanon has committed to disarming Hezbollah, starting in the south near the frontier.
Last August, the UN Security Council voted for the peacekeepers to leave Lebanon in 2027.
UNIFIL has repeatedly reported Israeli fire near or toward its personnel in recent months, and last week said an Israeli attack near one of its positions lightly wounded a peacekeeper.
Personnel patrolling in south Lebanon on Friday “reported 15 rounds of small arms fire that struck no more than 50 meters away from them,” a UNIFIL statement said.
Shortly afterwards, “peacekeepers in a second patrol in the same area reported approximately 100 rounds of machine-gun fire struck approximately 50 meters from them,” it added, reporting no damage or injuries.
“Peacekeepers assessed that the fire came from an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) position south of the Blue Line in both cases,” the statement said, referring to the de facto border, and “sent a ‘stop fire’ request through its liaison channels.”
It said UNIFIL had informed the Israeli army about the peacekeepers’ activities in advance.
“Incidents like these are happening on a too-regular basis, and becoming a concerning trend,” the statement said.
“We reiterate our call to the IDF to cease aggressive behavior and attacks on or near peacekeepers working for peace and stability along the Blue Line.”
UNIFIL has acted as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon for decades, and recently has been working with Lebanon’s army to support a year-old ceasefire between Israel and militant group Hezbollah.
The force on Friday noted that “attacks on or near peacekeepers are serious violations” of a 2006 UN Security Council resolution that formed the basis of the current ceasefire.
Under the November 2024 truce, Israel was to withdraw its forces from south Lebanon, but it has kept them at five areas it deems strategic and carries out regular strikes on Lebanon, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah sites and operatives.
Under heavy US pressure and fears of expanded Israeli strikes, Lebanon has committed to disarming Hezbollah, starting in the south near the frontier.
Last August, the UN Security Council voted for the peacekeepers to leave Lebanon in 2027.
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