BEIRUT: Shelling by government forces targeting several locations in rebel-held northwest Syria killed seven civilians including four children on Saturday, a war monitor said.
The Damascus regime has been bombing opposition-held areas in apparent retaliation for an attack on a military academy graduation ceremony in Homs on Thursday that killed dozens of people.
“Seven civilians, including four children, were killed in ground bombardment by regime forces on several locations” on Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported.

GAZA: Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, said on Saturday that armed Palestinian factions intend to expand the ongoing battle in Gaza to the West Bank and Jerusalem. 

The battle moved into the heart of the “zionist entity,” he said. 

“This was the morning of defeat and humiliation upon our enemy, its soldiers, and its settlers,” he said. 

“What happened reveals the greatness of our preparation. What happened today reveals the weakness of the enemy.”

CAIRO: The international community was urged on Saturday to call on Israel to cease its attacks and provocative actions against the Palestinian people.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry called on the UN Security Council to “uphold its responsibility” and “put measures in place to protect Palestinian rights.”

President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi warned of a “vicious cycle” of violence.

WAD MADANI: A paramilitary attack on Jabal Awliya south of Khartoum killed at least 10 people on Saturday, activists reported, as the death toll from Sudan’s six-month war hit more than 9,000.

“Bombs fell inside civilian homes” in the small town some 50 km south of the city, the local “resistance committee” said.

The volunteer group is one of many across Sudan that used to organize pro-democracy protests. 

Since the war broke out between the army and paramilitaries on April 15, these groups have helped people caught up in the conflict.

ANKARA: The downing of a Turkish drone by US forces in northeastern Syria on Thursday night has raised concerns over its ramifications for the already-fragile relationship between Ankara and Washington. But both parties have moved quickly to de-escalate tensions.