Syrian army launches operation on ISIL Raqqa stronghold

Syrian army has launched a major anti-terrorist operation on ISIL radical group’s main stronghold in the northeastern city of Raqqa where it first announced its headquarters.
The aerial operation left at least 13 dead according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The death toll could be higher as target of the attacks were crowded places, the report said.
The so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant radical group has been maintaining a permanent base in Raqqa since last year and has been imposing its strict rule over the city.
The Western-backed Syrian opposition which has been leading the extremist-marked war in the country, left Raqqa residents to the radical al-Nusra Front, al-Qaeda’s representative on the ground, in March, last year.
The group was later replaced with the ISIL, another extremist group which wanted to be with al-Qaeda in Syria’s multinational war, but was disbanded.
The opposition has totally left Raqqa after tearing it apart with long battles between its fractions.
The Syrian army has increased its airstrikes on Raqqa since the group started its activities in neighboring Iraq.