Syrian activists: Airstrikes on IS-held areas kill dozens

Air raids on an Islamic Stateheld village and town in Syria have killed at least 32 civilians over the past two days, activists said Monday, underscoring the risk for hundreds of thousands of residents trapped in areas under the militant group’s control ahead of the looming battle for Raqqa.

The Syrian military, meanwhile, announced it had regained full control of a northeastern neighbourhood of Damascus, bringing all parts of the capital under the control of President Bashar Assad’s forces for the first time since 2012. The announcement followed a twoday evacuation of hundreds of rebels and civilians from the neighbourhood of Qaboun that was completed Monday.

The UN envoy for Syria insisted that the latest round of peace talks between the government and the opposition in Geneva are serious, after President Bashar Assad said last week that they were just for show.

Staffan de Mistura assured reporters that the government delegation attending the talks is “here to work.” The talks are scheduled to begin Tuesday and last around four days.

The envoy declined to comment on Assad’s remarks, aired by Belarus ONT television on Thursday. The Syrian leader said “nothing substantial” would come from the talks and that they were “merely a meeting for the media.”

The delegations aren’t expected to meet face-to-face, and de Mistura has called for reduced media involvement to foster a more “businesslike” atmosphere. It was not immediately clear who was behind the strikes on the village of Akayrshi on Sunday and the town of Boukamal on the Syrian-Iraqi border Monday, and activists blamed the U.S.-led coalition.

The coalition, in an emailed response to The Associated Press, said it did not conduct airstrikes on Boukamal on Monday.