Fighting continued in the almost six-year conflict with Syrian government forces recapturing territory from insurgents in several western areas. Rebels also suffered setbacks further northeast near the Turkish border on Saturday, in fighting against Islamic State militants, British-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. The advance in the Awaija area strengthened their hold on areas surrounding rebel-held east Aleppo, the Observatory said. The Syrian army and its allies recaptured several towns and villages from rebels in Hama's northern countryside, reversing recent insurgent gains in the area. (Reporting by John Davison; additional reporting by Michelle Nichols at the United Nations and Daren Butler in Istanbul; editing by John Stonestreet and Bernard Orr)

Source: The Star October 08, 2016 19:53 UTC