DAMASCUS, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Syrian rebels on Tuesday fired about 900 shells and missiles on the government forces' positions in the countryside of the northern provinces of Aleppo, Hama, Idlib and Latakia, a war monitor reported.
The intense shelling, carried out by several rebel groups including the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the Turkey-backed Faylaq al-Sham group, killed 12 Syrian soldiers and pro-government fighters, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The death toll is likely to rise as many of the wounded soldiers are in critical condition, The Britain-based watchdog added.
The shelling came partly in retaliation for a Sunday Russian bombardment on positions of the Faylaq al-Sham that killed 78 of its fighters and wounded many others.
Faylaq al-Sham, or the Sham Legion, is an alliance of 19 rebel groups formed in 2014. Some of the groups inside the legion were previously affiliated with the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood. Enditem
