Beirut, Jun 12 (AFP) At least 36 people were killed in shelling and clashes across Syria today, 24 of whom were civilians and 12 soldiers, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Regime forces rained shells on rebel positions in the northwestern Latakia province, pounding the town of Al-Haffe for the eighth straight day as they appeared to be preparing to storm it, monitors said. The Observatory said troops also shelled rebel bastions in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, the northern province of Aleppo and several parts of the central province of Homs. It said said 13 civilians, including a young girl, were killed when troops pounded a neighbourhood of the city of Deir Ezzor.
Regime forces also pounded Hreitan in the northern province of Aleppo while soldiers clashed with armed rebels at the entrance to the town, leading to "heavy losses among regime troops," activists said. The shelling "destroyed a large number of houses and forced residents to flee," said the Local Coordination Committees, which spearheads protests against the regime.
According to the Observatory, troops used heavy artillery and helicopter gunships in their attacks on Al-Haffe, where activists feared a massacre would be committed if regime troops managed to e nter the restive town. At least 120 people have died in fighting in Al-Haffe over the past week, including 68 troops, 29 civilians and 23 rebels, with hundreds wounded, the Observatory's Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.
Troops also stepped up attacks on the central city of Homs and its suburbs, pounding rebel positions, the Observatory said.
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