ANKARA

At least 18 people were killed and three others injured on Sunday in mine explosions in west-central Syria.

Two mines went off in the Al-Salamiyah village, located in the east of Hama, according to the SANA news agency, which is affiliated with the Bashar al-Assad regime.

The area where the explosion took place is controlled by the Assad regime forces and Iran-backed foreign terrorists.

Syria has been embroiled in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.

More than 5 million civilians have since been displaced.

*Writing by Gozde Bayar