2nd LD: 25 killed in warplane crash in Syria's Idlib

At least 25 people were killed and tens of others wounded on Monday when a Syrian warplane crashed in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib, activists reported.

The war jet crashed over a popular marketplace in the town of Ariha in the countryside of Idlib, much of which has fallen recently to the so-called Jaish al-Fateh, or the Conquer Army, an alliance of several Jihadi groups, mainly the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front.

Activists said the Jaish al-Fateh downed the warplane with anti-aircraft missiles.

Another activist group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, placed the death toll at no less than 12 civilians.

Meanwhile, the oppositional Sham News Network posted photos of the aftermath of the plane crash, showing destroyed buildings and a ravaged square covered with debris and destroyed concrete.

The official Syrian media is yet to comment to the incident.

Ariha was the latest town in the countryside of Idlib near the Turkish border that has fallen to the Jihadi groups.

Earlier in the day, the Syrian army targeted the rebel positions in Ariha and the towns of Bzait and Msharfeh, as well as the vicinity of the Abu al-Duhur airbase, which is besieged by the Nusra militants.

The incident is the latest in a series of violence that engulfed Idlib, where the Syrian army, backed by pro-government militiamen, has unleashed a large scale offensive to recapture areas in the western countryside of Idlib and the adjacent central province of Hama.

Both sides have suffered losses during the raging battles.

The rebels have stormed much of Idlib province over the past few months. The Syrian government has repeatedly accused Turkey of rendering support to the rebels in their push toward Idlib. Endit