Syria strikes hit near Damascus despite ceasefire: monitor

Syrian rebel fighters from the Faylaq al-Rahman brigade carry their homemade 12.7mm sniper rifle in Ain Terma in the rebel stronghold of Eastern Ghouta outside Damascus, on July 20, 2017

vbBEIRUT, AFP, 23 July 2017  - Syria's regime carried out air raids on one of the last rebel strongholds near Damascus Sunday, a monitor said, a day after it declared a ceasefire in parts of the besieged enclave.

The Syrian army on Saturday announced a halt in fighting for parts of Eastern Ghouta, a rebel-held region on the outskirts of the capital that has been ravaged in the six-year conflict.

'Regime warplanes targeted the area of Ain Terma with at least six strikes since early morning, and two raids were carried out on and around the city of Douma,' the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said.

The Britain-based monitor, which relies on sources in Syria for its information, did not report any casualties.
Regime shelling also hit the outskirts of the town of Jisreen on Sunday, the Observatory said, after regime artillery and rocket fire on areas including Ain Terma and the town of Harasta on Saturday after the ceasefire started.http://bit.ly/2tCw3xQ