1 killed in regime shelling of Syria's Turkmen Mountain

HATAY, Turkey

A Syrian civilian was killed and four others were injured when regime forces shelled opposition-held areas in the northwestern Latakia province on Wednesday, according to a local source.

The artillery shelling targeted the villages of Kelez, Sarraf, Sallur, Karaman and Isapinari in the Turkmen Mountain (Jabal al-Turkman) region, the source said on condition of anonymity due to security fears.

Regime forces were also reported to have shelled Jabal Al-Akrad area, west of the Turkmen Mountain region.

Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests -- which erupted as part of the Arab Spring uprisings -- with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, more than 250,000 people have been killed and more than 10 million displaced across the war-torn country, according to the UN.

Reporting by Erdal Turkoglu; Writing by Mahmoud Barakat