Syria flare-up kills 35 fighters, 10 civilians

At least 10 civilians and 35 combatants, mostly pro-regime forces, were killed Saturday in clashes and air strikes that erupted at dawn in northwestern Syria, a war monitor said. The flare-up came as Russian-backed regime forces tried to retake two villages seized by jihadists and allied rebels earlier this month, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
"Since this morning, the Syrian regime and allied fighters have launched five failed attempts to regain control of Jibine and Tal Maleh in northwestern Hama province," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman. Syrian regime air strikes killed nine jihadists and rebel fighters, the war monitor said.