IN BRIEF (Page 4)

Syria

Army retakes key city held by IS

The Syrian army on Sunday fully captured a key city in the central province of Homs near the ancient city of Palmyra, following intense battles against the Islamic State group, state news agency SANA reported. The Syrian forces backed by Russian warplanes stormed the city of Qaryatain from a number of directions, a day after Syria's boots on the ground stormed areas in the western parts of that key city.