DAMASCUS, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- A total of 11 people, mostly militants, were killed Friday by an explosion that rocked an area in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib, as part of the rampant lawlessness in that rebel-held area, a war monitor reported.
The explosion targeted a rebel position near the Mutlaq roundabout in the southern part of Idlib city, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The Britain-based watchdog group said it wasn't immediately clear whether the explosion was caused by a booby-trapped vehicle or weapons' depot in the area.
Seven of the slain people were identified as rebels while the four others are not known whether they are civilians or militants, according to the observatory.
The death toll could likely rise as many people are in critical conditions.
Around 440 civilians and rebels have lost their lives in the countryside of Idlib, Aleppo and Hama provinces since last April as a result of the lawlessness and the infighting among the rebel groups.
Idlib has emerged as the last major rebel stronghold in Syria as various rebel groups were repositioned in Idlib after they had been defeated elsewhere in Syria.
The area has been included in the demilitarized zone's deal that was reached by Turkey and Russia last September.
However, a state of lawlessness is widely spread in Idlib and nearby rebel-held areas in the countryside of Hama and Aleppo provinces.
