“ISIL” Kidnaps 230 Civilians in Syria’s Homs Province

Local Editor

"ISIL" militants operating in Syria had abducted more than 200 civilians in a town in the country's central Homs Province, reports said.

On Friday, the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights [SOHR] said the abductees were taken in the central town of al-Qaryatain, on August 5.

The Britain-based group's head Rami Abdel Rahman said the terrorists had "kidnapped at least 230 people, including at least 60 Christians, during a sweep through al-Qaryatain."

Further, the observatory added that many of those taken by "ISIL" had sought refuge in the town after fleeing violence in the northern Aleppo Province.

According to Abdel Rahman, the civilians were wanted by "ISIL" Takfiris for "collaborating" with the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The town of al-Qaryatain lies at the crossroads between territory held by "ISIL" in the Homs countryside and areas in the al-Qalamoun region.

SOHR announced on Thursday that "ISIL" terrorists had captured the key town in Homs Province.

This came as 20 other people were also reportedly kidnapped by "ISIL" militants after they entered the Yarmouk refugee camp in the Syrian capital, Damascus, in order to collect drinking water.

The chaos in Syria, which started in March 2011, had reportedly claimed more than 240,000 lives up until now.

The violence also forced over 3.8 million Syrians to take refuge in neighboring countries, including Jordan and Lebanon. More than 7.2 million others had been displaced within Syria, according to the United Nations.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team