Militants Attack Syrian Village, Killing Five, Including Child

Five people including a child were killed in Syria, during a militant attack.

BEIRUT (Sputnik) — Unidentified gunmen staged an onslaught on a village in central Syria, killing five local residents, eyewitnesses told Sputnik on Thursday.

"The militants attacked al-Kanafiz village in Salamiyah's countryside and killed five people, including a child," a villager said, adding that the gunmen injured another two people.

According to the source, the attackers "looted the homes of local residents and destroyed more than ten dwellings." It is unclear which militant group they belong to.

Syria has been riven by civil war since 2011, with government forces fighting numerous militias, including radical Islamists, the most notable being the Islamic State (ISIL).

In late February, the IS reportedly seized several Assyrian Christian villages in northeastern Syria. The militants demolished churches and abducted at least 90 civilians, including priests, women and children.

The ISIL controls large areas of Syria and Iraq, and is infamous for numerous abductions, killings, and desecrating religious and historic institutions.

A US-led coalition comprising more than 60 countries is conducting air strikes against the rebel group.