Coalition air strikes kill over 500 in Syria including 32 civilians

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of activists on the ground, said 553 people have been killed since the air strikes began on September 23, including 32 civilians. The civilians included six children and five women.

The group said it has documented the deaths of 464 fighters with the Islamic State (IS) group, but the real number could be much higher. Another 57 fighters with the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front were killed in air strikes on the northern province of Aleppo and Idlib, the Observatory said.

Many of the IS fighters have been killed in or near Kobani, the target of a massive jihadi offensive since mid-September.

IS fighters have captured dozens of surrounding Kurdish villages and forced more than 200,000 people to flee for safety in neighbouring Turkey.

Earlier this week, The US Central Command said its forces have conducted more than 135 air strikes against Islamic State militants in and around Kobani, killing hundreds of fighters.

“Combined with continued resistance to Isil (IS) on the ground, indications are that these strikes have slowed Isil advances into the city, killed hundreds of their fighters and destroyed or damaged scores of pieces of Isil combat equipment and fighting positions,” Central Command said in a statement.

An Associated Press journalist on the Turkish side of the border said heavy machine gun fire could be heard from Kobani, which is also known as Ayn Arab, today.

“The fighting has been ongoing since last night on the eastern and southern fronts. It is some of the longest clashes in Kobani,” said Kurdish activist Farhad Shami. “The fighting usually only takes place at night.”

The Observatory also reported four coalition air strikes on oil wells in the Jafra field in eastern Syria. The US-led coalition has aggressively targeted IS-held oil facilities in Syria, which provide income for the militants.