Ahrar al-Sham group on Tuesday claimed responsibility for the killing of Mihrac Ural, leader of the pro-regime militia called: “Popular Front for the Liberation of Iskenderun.”
Mihrac Ural was killed in an attack by the Ahrar al-Sham group in rural Latakia, the group’s spokesman Abu Yusuf al-Muhajir said on Wednesday.
Al-Muhajir said the group’s fighters had shelled regime positions after spotting “suspicious activities” in northern Latakia’s Nabi Yunus area. He also said that Ural -along with a number of Russian officers- was killed in the attack. Al-Muhajir added that sources from inside Latakia had confirmed the death of Ural.
The “Popular Front for the Liberation of Iskenderun” is responsible for the killing of more than 50 civilians in the village of al-Bayda in Tartous province back in 2013.
Turkish authorities also found Ural responsible for planning twin car bombings in the town of Reyhanli in Turkey’s southern Hatay province in May of 2013 which left more than 50 people dead.
Meanwhile, the PYD militias launched a surprise attack on the town of Azaz north of Aleppo on Tuesday, but were repelled by FSA fighters who said they destroyed two pickups equipped with heavy machine guns and a 120 mm gun belonging to the attacking forces.
Azaz, home to thousands of internally displaced people who have fled the Russian-backed regime onslaught on northern rural Aleppo, has received a further influx of people fleeing the ongoing battles raging in eastern Homs province. Residents of the town are already witnessing dire humanitarian conditions as they can hardly cope with growing needs of the people seeking shelter in the area located near the Turkish border.
In yet another violation of the truce agreement, regime forces on Tuesday shelled the town of Hayyan north of Aleppo with rockets and barrel bombs. Rebel fighters downed a reconnaissance drone belonging to regime forces on Ratyan-Bayanoun frontline. Clashes broke out between the two sides near the towns of Al-Tammoura, Nubbul and al-Zahra.
Clashes also were reported between rebel fighters and regime forces near Aleppo Citadel, while snipers belonging to the PYD-affiliated militias stationed in the neighborhood of Sheikh Maksoud targeted civilians in the nearby neighborhood of Al-Hullk, injuring two men and a woman. (Source: Syrian Coalition + Anadolu Agency)
