Syrian air raids on IS-held towns kill dozens

BEIRUT (AP) — Activists say Syrian air raids on two northern towns held by the militant Islamic State group have killed more than 50 people in two days.

Rami Abdurrahman of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Friday that several airstrikes on the towns of al-Bab and neighboring Qabasin killed at least 53 people, including seven children.

The strikes occurred Thursday. Another Syrian monitoring group also reported the raids, and activists uploaded video of the strikes' aftermaths to social networks. They appeared genuine and corresponded to Associated Press reporting.

The Syrian government has been heavily bombing areas held by rebels and the militant Islamic State group in recent days. Rights groups accuse government forces of using bombs that cannot be precisely targeted, causing high civilian casualties.

-- (c) Associated Press 2014-12-27

Rights groups accuse government forces of using bombs that cannot be precisely targeted, causing high civilian casualties.

While overlooking the fact that fighters which the Ba'athists are targetting, must be fighting from within civilian settings in the first place.

Which, in itself,, should surely come in for some equal criticism from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, but are they doing so?

With total casualty toll featuring varying estimates around the 200,000 mark, it might be hard to relate to a single incident. Bring to mind Brecht's "When Evil-Doing Comes Like Falling Rain".

It's also not easy choosing sides, what with IS on one corner and Assad Junior on the other. May contribute to the evident lack of interest this topic generates.

One could imagine that had this attack, with its tragic results, would have been carried out by a USA drone, or the IAF - a heated debate would be in progress, along with a few pages worth of posts.