Air raid kills 19 Syrians in IS-held village
Air raid kills 19 Syrians in IS-held village
An air raid has hit a village controlled by the IS group killing civilians including three children, close to an area where Turkish forces are advancing.
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Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been killed in Syria's war [AFP]
Three children were among at least 19 civilian killed in an air raid on a village held by the Islamic State group in northern Syria on Wednesday.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it was unclear who had carried out the strike, which took place in an area where rebels backed by Turkish forces are advancing against IS.
Turkey began its operation inside Syria, dubbed Operation Euphrates Shield, on 24 August.
Ankara said it is targeting IS but also the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), which Turkey considers to be a "terrorist" group despite their common opposition to IS.
According to the observatory, the strike hit the village of Thalthana, in northern Aleppo province.
Thalthana lies near the key IS stronghold of Al-Bab, and is just 12km southeast of IS-held Dabiq, which Turkish-backed rebels have been pushing towards in recent days.
Dabiq holds symbolic importance for IS because of their belief in a prophecy that states it will be the site of an apocalyptic battle between Muslims and Christians.
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