IS suicide bombers kill 10 Syria soldiers: monitor

At least 13 civilians were killed in a separate car bomb attack against a mosque in a village near Damascus

BEIRUT: Two suicide bombers from the Islamic State group have killed 10 Syrian soldiers in the northeastern city of Hasakeh, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Wednesday.

Separately, at least 13 civilians were killed in a car bomb attack against a mosque in a village near the capital Damascus, the monitor said.

All three incidents occurred Tuesday night.

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"Ten soldiers were killed and 16 others injured in two suicide attacks carried out by IS against army positions in Hasakeh," the Britain-based Observatory said.

"The first attack was carried out by three militants against a military barracks in the centre of town, while the second was carried out by one suicide bomber against a checkpoint near a children's hospital."

A third suicide bomber hit a post manned by the Kurdish security forces in the city, causing serious damage to buildings in the area but no deaths.

Control of Hasakeh, which is ethnically mixed, is divided between Syrian troops and Kurdish forces.

On May 30, IS launched a bid to enter the city, but was pushed back after violent clashes with Syrian troops and Kurdish fighters.

Elsewhere in the country, the Observatory said 13 civilians were killed when a car bomb exploded in front of a mosque in the village of Al-Tall as worshippers were leaving prayers.

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State news agency SANA reported the "terrorist" blast that targeted the mosque, but gave no precise toll.

It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack in the town, which lies just north of the capital, where a truce is in place between rebel forces inside and regime troops outside.

More than 230,000 people have been killed in Syria since the conflict began with anti-government protests before spiralling into a war after a regime crackdown.