Syrian Army Bombards Rebels In Birthplace Of Uprising

Syria's military bombarded the last rebel enclave in the southern city of Daraa over the weekend, killing at least six people in one of the deadliest attacks in its siege of the birthplace of the country's uprising, residents told Suleiman Al-khalidi of Reuters.

Photo Insert: Witnesses allege that the Syrian army is using improvised missiles known as elephant rockets.

The army declined to comment on the reports but said in a statement it was losing patience with what it called "armed groups and terrorists" in the neighborhood.

An elite division of the army, backed by Iranian militias, has been blocking food and fuel deliveries to Daraa al Balad to press rebels to surrender three years after government forces retook the rest of the area near the border with Jordan.

"They are using so-called elephant rockets indiscriminately," Abu Jehad al Horani, a local official told Reuters, referring to improvised missiles. Explosions could be heard in the background.

Residents said bodies of six people were pulled out of bombarded houses in the center of the Daraa neighborhood which saw the first peaceful protests against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad in 2011.

The Syrian military's pro-Iranian Fourth Division, the main force in the southern province, backed by Tehran-financed local militias, have encircled the bastion for two months.

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