24 civilians killed by IS in Syria

Damascus, July 29 (IANS) At least 24 civilians were killed on Friday by Islamic State (IS) militant group in Syria, the country's Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported.

The IS fighters stormed the village of Buwair to break the siege imposed by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces rebels (SDF), in the IS-held town of Manbej in the key province of Aleppo, Xinhua news agency reported.

Th SDF succeeded in recapturing the towns stormed by the IS over the past 24 hours.

Manbej has a strategic importance to the US-backed rebels due to its location near Turkey.

Capturing Manbej would deprive the IS of a key stronghold near Turkey.