Mass grave discovered in Damascus and US strikes ISIS targets - Trending

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A mass grave outside Damascus contains the bodies of at least 100,000 people killed by the government of former president Bashar Al Assad, the head of a US-based Syrian advocacy group said.

Bodies were transported to the burial site in Al Qutayfah, 40km north of the capital, in their hundreds, for at least seven years, reports said. The site is yet to be excavated. At a separate site in Aqraba, The National witnessed bags of bones containing at least 20 bodies being taken from the ground.

The US announced on Monday that American troops had conducted air strikes on ISIS targets in Syria, killing 12 fighters.

“The strikes against the ISIS leaders, operatives and camps were conducted as part of the ongoing mission to disrupt, degrade and defeat ISIS … and to ensure that ISIS does not seek opportunities to reconstitute in central Syria,” the US Central Command said on X.

The strikes were carried out in former regime and Russian-controlled areas, the US Central Command said, adding that there were no indications of civilian casualties.

Russia and Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, the militant group that led the toppling of the Assad regime, have begun negotiations over Moscow's military presence in Syria.

The National gained rare access to the Hmeimim airbase on Monday and conducted interviews with a Russian military representative who confirmed HTS and Russia established communications last week in an amicable atmosphere.

An HTS source told The National on Monday they are at “the first step of negotiations”.

Russia maintains strategic military assets in Syria, including the Hmeimim airbase in Latakia and the Tartus naval base. Both their futures are uncertain following the removal of Mr Al Assad, who was a long-time ally of Russia.