Syria Presses Crackdown on Opponents of Assad Regime

Syrian government troops pressed a campaign to crush regime opponents in several areas on Thursday, activists said.

Two weeks into the truce, at least two people were killed in the town of Maree, near the northern city of Aleppo, and one man died in the village of Mohsen, northeastern Deir Ezzor province, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Loud blasts and heavy gunfire were reported in Harasta, a suburb of Damascus, said the Britain-based watchdog said, adding regime troops carried out raids between Harasta and Barzeh, a district of the capital.

Activists reported clashes in other regions as well, including the southern province of Daraa, cradle of the uprising against President Bashar Assad's rule, in northwestern Idlib province and in central Homs.

Explosions and powerful gunfire were also reported overnight in Hama, where the Observatory said at least 12 people were killed on Wednesday during government shelling on a working-class neighborhood.

Some activists have put the death toll from Wednesday's bombing of Hama at 68, including 16 children.

The unrest was taking place despite a ceasefire that has failed to take hold, with hundreds killed since it went into effect April 12.