Extremist militants kill 30 civilians in northwest Syria: state media

The extremist militant groups committed a massacre in a town they captured in northwestern Syria, killing over 30 civilians, mostly women and children, the state news agency SANA reported Sunday.

The "terrorist" groups committed an "appalling massacre" in Jisr al-Shughour town in the countryside of the northwestern city of Idlib, after storming it on Saturday, said SANA.

It added that the Syrian army launched overnight raids on the military posts which were overran by the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front and likeminded groups in that key town near the Turkish borders, inflicting hefty losses among the militants.

Meanwhile, the pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV said the Syrian army started Sunday a counter-offensive to recapture Jisr al-Shughour, which constitutes the main route that connects the coastal region in Syria with the Turkish borders and the city of Aleppo.

The Nusra Front has made notable progress over the past five weeks, capturing many Syrian areas, mainly the city of Idlib, and the town of Busra al-Sham in the south in addition to some posts in the al-Ghab Plains in central Syria. Enditem