Islamic State militants capture villages near Aleppo: monitorOctober 9, 2015 - 12:06 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Islamic State fighters have captured several Syrian villages from rival insurgents near Aleppo, a monitoring group said on Friday, October 9, despite Russian air strikes that Moscow says have targeted the hardline group, Reuters reports. Rami Abdulrahman, head of the Syria Observatory for Human Rights, said Islamic State forces had taken over villages including Tel Suseen and Tel Qarah from other rebels groups just outside the city. The advance, which he said marked their biggest gains in the area since late August, brought them within 2 km (just over a mile) of a government-held industrial zone on the northern edge of Aleppo, the largest city in north Syria. Russian jets and warships have been bombarding targets across Syria for 10 days in a campaign which Moscow says is aimed at the Islamic State fighters who control large parts of north and east Syria, as well as swathes of neighboring Iraq. Supported by the Russian air campaign, Syrian troops and allied militias have launched an offensive against rebels in the Ghab Plain and other parts of the northern province of Hama, where Abdulrahman said clashes continued late into Thursday night. 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 | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |