Syrian forces bombarded towns in the northern province of Aleppo on Saturday, as the conflict spilled into neighbouring Lebanon, where two girls were killed amid cross-border clashes. In Syria itself, at least 19 people were killed, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. “Regime forces are attempting to regain control over this (Aleppo) region, where they suffered heavy casualties over the past months to rebels,” the Observatory said, adding that the bombardment killed a civilian and wounded dozens in the town of Qabtan al-Jabal. “A large number of families have been displaced from the area for fear of shelling and lack of water, electricity and medical services,” the watchdog added of the attacks in the northern province. The violence came a day after 93 people were killed across Syria on Friday, as dozens of protesters took to the streets calling for a “People’s liberation war.” In Lebanon, a teenager died when a rocket hit her house in the border region of Wadi Khaled, a Lebanese security official told AFP, adding that five others were wounded by rockets and exchanges of gunfire. “A few hours later, an eight-year-old Bedouin girl, who recently fled with her parents from Syria, was killed,” said a hospital source in Akkar province. “A military expert who visited the site said it was either a mine planted in the area or an explosive they were handling,” the security source said, after initially reporting that a shell had hit their tent. A local official said clashes had broken out at dawn between the Syrian army and gunmen on the Lebanese side of the border. On Friday, some 100 nations and organisations meeting in Paris called on the UN Security Council to adopt a transition plan for Syria backed by economic sanctions if the regime refuses to comply.
