Chaotic situation continues in Syrian cities

DAMASCUS - Chaotic situation continued Sunday across Syria with incessant urban battles and skirmishes between the armed insurgent groups and government forces.

The state news agency SANA said security forces ambushed on Sunday an armed group at Aghyour roundabout in northern Aleppo province and killed and wounded a number of its members, adding that the locals of al-Safira area in Aleppo have prevented gunmen riding five cars that are equipped with machine guns from entering their area and appealed on competent authorities to intervene.

The state news agency also reported many casualties among armed men it said had tried on Sunday to infiltrate into Aleppo city from Bab Antakia entrance.

SANA said that with the residents' cooperation, the authorities killed a Wael Mohammad al-Majdalawi, a prominent member of the terror group 'al-Nusra Front' in Damascus.

Little is known about al-Nusra, but experts said it's linked to al-Qaida of Iraq.

Meanwhile, in central Homs province, SANA said the authorities destroyed on Sunday two hideouts of armed groups in al-Hamidieh neighborhood.

SANA said that tens of "terrorists" were killed during the operation and an ammunition dump was destroyed.

It added that the authorities pursued armed groups in al- Shammas neighborhood, pointing out that clashes between the authorities and the "terrorists"led to killing a number of " terrorists" and wounding several others.

The Syrian administration branded the rebels as terrorists, which are backed by a foreign plot with the aim to collapse the Syrian state.

Also in Homs, SANA said the authorities pursued an armed group in Talbiseh city and arrested 26 of its members, who were attacking citizens and blocking streets.

In the southern province of Daraa, the competent authorities pursued armed groups at al-Nazihin camp, SANA said, adding that the confrontation left a number of armed men killed or wounded.

In Ariha suburb of the northwestern province of Idlib, the authorities arrested a number of armed men who have committed acts of killing and robbery, said SANA.

It added that 80 explosive devices were confiscated and a hideout was discovered in that area.

Meanwhile, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that all communications are down in the city of Aleppo, as well as large parts of its countryside, adding that no reports came out of the province since dawn Sunday.

In Daraa, The Observatory said the town of Busra al-sham is still being bombarded by regime forces as the clashes between them and the rebels are still raging on.

In Homs city, the Observatory said a tentative calm has prevailed the Shammas neighborhood after 24 hours of military operations, bombardment, clashes and intense gunfire, adding that 12 people have been killed during the military operations.

It said the neighborhoods of Khaldiya, Jourat al-Shayyah, and the old quarter of Homs are still being bombarded by regime forces.

In the eastern province of Deir al-Zour, the Observatory said the al-Knamat and al-Hamidiyeh neighborhoods were bombarded by several rockets, fired by the regime forces, noting that no reports of casualties have emerged.

It said the city of al-Mayadeen and the town of al-Quriya in Deir al-Zour were also bombarded by regime forces as clashes there are incessant.

The Local Coordination Committees, another activists' network, placed the death toll of Sunday's violence at 53 people.

However, non of the activists' accounts could be verified independently.