At least 75 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant militants in Syria have laid down their weapons and defected to an umbrella rebel group called ‘Islamic Front’, according to an opposition leader.
Velid al-Agha, who belongs to the opposition Al-Islam Brigade, said that the joint opposition Islamic Front has launched operations against the Syrian army.
"Operations have been continuing for four days in eastern Damascus province and Eastern Guta. Most ISIL members had left the area and others have surrendered," he said.
Opposition SMART News Agency has confirmed the number of surrendered militants.
Syria has been gripped by fighting since the regime of Bashar al-Assad launched a violent crackdown in response to anti-government protests in March, 2011, triggering a conflict that has spiraled into a civil war.
The UN has stopped updating its death toll for the country because an official count has become too difficult to verify. At least 100,000 deaths were recorded in the last official count, in July 2013.
www.aa.com.tr/en
