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Report: Syrian Airstrikes Kill Dozens of Civilians

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A man inspects a hole in the ground after what activists said was an airstrike by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Khan Sheikhoun, northern Idlib province, Dec. 26, 2014.
A man inspects a hole in the ground after what activists said was an airstrike by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Khan Sheikhoun, northern Idlib province, Dec. 26, 2014.

A group monitoring the conflict in Syria said Friday that government airstrikes had killed at least 37 civilians in an area controlled by Islamic State fighters.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said seven children and two women were among those killed in the attack on Al-Bab and the nearby town of Qabaseen. The area, northeast of Aleppo, has been the target of repeated government bombings.

U.S. and partner nation military forces on Friday conducted four airstrikes in Syria against Islamic State targets near Kobani.

Al-Bab and Qabaseen, Syria
Al-Bab and Qabaseen, Syria

Separately, five coalition airstrikes against the Islamic State militants took place in Iraq, near Al Asad, Al Qaim, Fallujah and Mosul.

On Thursday, coalition forces conducted 15 airstrikes in Syria against Islamic State targets near Kobani, Al Hasakah and Raqqa. In Iraq, 15 strikes occurred near Al Qaim, Al Asad, Mosul, Sinjar, Bayji, Kirkuk and Tal Afar.

Earlier this week, Islamic State militants captured a Jordanian pilot whose coalition fighter jet went down near the Syrian town of Raqqa.

The U.S. and Jordanian militaries have acknowledged that the plane crashed but have disputed Islamic State claims that the militants brought down the aircraft.

Separately, a member of IS, Abu Jandal, has dared the head of the Indonesian Armed Forces, General Moeldoko, to join the coalition forces in their fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

In a four-minute video released Friday, Jandal also challenged the Indonesian police force to fight on the battlefield.

Jandal said he was returning to Indonesia to fight the armed forces and police.

Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said the Indonesian government was preparing various measures in anticipation of IS threats, but he did not elaborate.

Some information for this report came from AFP and Reuters.

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