Islamic State attacked villages near the only use-able road that links the government-controlled cities of Aleppo and Homs on Thursday, killing many residents, Syrian state media and a Britain-based war monitor said. At least 15 were civilians, including five children, and three of them died in execution-style killings, it said. The Observatory said Islamic State seized Aqarib al-Safi and parts of the nearby village of al-Mabouja as clashes raged on. Many of the people in the area belong to the Ismaili sect, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam, and would be regarded by Islamic State as infidels. Islamic State has lost recently large swathes of territory in Syria during separate military campaigns, including by the Russian-backed Syrian army and U.S.-backed militias.

Source: Dhaka Tribune May 18, 2017 15:45 UTC