Islamist insurgents capture large parts of Syrian townApril 25, 2015 - 14:41 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Islamist insurgents including al Qaeda's wing in Syria Nusra Front on Saturday, April 25, captured large parts of the northwestern Syrian town of Jisr al-Shughour for the first time in the four year conflict, according to Reuters. Syrian activists and a violence monitoring group said that fighters have pushed inside the town which lies on a road between the coastal city of Latakia and Syria's second city of Aleppo, after days of heavy fighting. Syrian state television said the army was engaged in "fierce battles in Jisr al-Shughour". Syrian forces captured the town of Jisr al-Shughour in June 2011 when what the government described as armed gangs had killed more than 120 security personnel in the town after large demonstrations there. A rebellion in Jisr al-Shughour, a town of 50,000, in 1980 against President Hafez al-Assad, Bashar's father, was crushed with scores of deaths. Last month Sunni Islamist groups seized the city of Idlib, the capital of the province of Idlib, after forming an alliance which includes Nusra, the hardline Ahrar al-Sham movement and Jund al-Aqsa, but not Islamic State, their rival. The Islamist alliance calls itself Army of Fatah, a reference to the conquests that spread Islam across the Middle East from the seventh century. They continued their assault to capture the few towns and villages which remained under the government forces in the province. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide. Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed. Azerbaijan razes historic Armenian church to ground Azerbaijan has demolished the historic Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham). Russia to begin assessing migrant workers' speaking skills Rosobrnadzor is planning to change the Russian language exam for migrant workers and include an assessment of speaking skills |