Syrian rebels kill seven with toxic gas: Russian Defense Ministry

Seven people died and more than 20 were injured as rebels attacked the northern Syrian city Aleppo with toxic gas, the Russian Defense Ministry said Thursday.

The ministry said in a statement on its website that shells containing poisonous agents were used to attack a residential area in the eastern part of the city controlled by insurgents of Harakat Nour al-Din al-Zenki, which claimed to be an opposition group.

It said the Nusra Front, Islamic State and other terrorist groups did not stop making attempts to break the ceasefire regime.

Within the last 24 hours, rebels shelled various quarters of the city as well as some areas in the Damascus Province in southwestern Syria and the Hama Province in the midwest of the country.

The ministry said the cessation of hostilities was observed in most Syrian provinces in the past 24 hours, so Russian and Syrian air forces did not make strikes against armed formations of the opposition, which adhered to the truce.

Aleppo has seen intensified battles and violence recently with the government troops tightening the noose on the rebel-held areas in the eastern part, while the rebels unleashed several offensives to break the government siege on rebel-held areas. Endi