PHOTO: Hezbollah’s commander in Syria, Mustafa Badreddine, killed by Israeli strike on Thursday

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Special: Russia “Proves” Terrorist Chemical Weapons…with a Video Game Screenshot
2 Killed, 5 Wounded as Assad Regime Blocks 1st Aid to Darayya Since 2012
Iran Daily: “Assad Will Remain in Power and Warmongers Will Be Disgraced”

UPDATE 1330 GMT: The rebels’ Homs Operations Room has issued a statement about alleged killing of civilians when factions took over the village of al-Zara in northern Homs on Thursday.

The statement acknowledges casualties among residents, but says that two women who were killed were armed like “most civilians” in the village. It said that fighters only returned fire after the women shot, killing one rebel, so the deaths were “lawful”. However, it says those pictured “demeaning the bodies” — stepping on them — will be dealt with: “We will punish anyone responsible for acts against our principles of respect for life and human dignity.”

Earlier, the Jaish al-Fateh rebel bloc acknowledged that the mayor and men whom it called “shabiha” (pro-Assad militia) were executed.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Syria’s rebels turned back pro-Assad attacks both north and south of Aleppo city on Thursday, while advancing in a sudden offensive in northern Homs Province.

South of Aleppo, Iranian-led forces tried once again to retake Khan Tuman, the town near the Aleppo-to-Damascus highway captured last week by rebels and the jihadists of Jabhat al-Nusra. Rebel outlets said that they inflicted heavy casualties in the latest setback to Tehran.

Earlier this week, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards admitted multiple casualties in Syria’s conflict for the first time — 13 troops killed, 21 wounded, and more captured — when rebels took Khan Tuman. A large but unknown number of Iranian-led foreign militia have also died.

North of Aleppo, the pro-Assad forces failed to take territory near Handarat, threatening a vital supply route to opposition-held areas of the city. Rebels again asserted that dozens of attackers were killed.

Pro-Assad fighters from the Palestinian-Syrian group Liwa al-Quds retreating:

Meanwhile, the rebel faction Ahrar al-Sham and Ajnad al-Sham and the jihadists of Jabhat al-Nusra captured the village of al-Zara in northern Homs Province, hours after announcing an offensive to counter the attempt by the Assad regime and its allies to regain Khan Tuman.

Claims circulated on Friday morning that a number of civilians in al-Zara have been abducted or killed. They assert that most of the village’s residents are Alawite, the same group to which President Assad and many of the regime’s elite belong.

Prime Minister Wael al-Halqi declared “a heinous crime against the whole world”.

Support for the allegation was initially sketchy, with three claimed images — one which clearly appears to be of slain female civilians, rather than fighters — and rumors circulated as “fact” by the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

However, the Jaish al-Fateh rebel bloc has now acknowledged that the town’s mayor and “a number of shabiha” (pro-Assad militia) were executed.

A BBC correspondent cites cites a “usually reliable source” that the mayor and his relatives were killed and other civilians have been seized.

Footage of rebels in the village, with images of slain regime fighters:

Opposition outlets say at least 20 civilians were killed by a regime airstrike in the center of Idlib city.

Another 13 civilians were injured by strikes on the Red Crescent center in the town of Ariha, according to the Revolutionary Forces of Syria Media Office. Saraqeb, near Idlib, was hit but suffered no casualties.

Footage from Idlib city:

Ma’arat al-Nu’man Protest Demands Jabhat al-Nusra Return Weapons

A rally in Ma’arat al-Nu’man in Idlib Province demands that Jabhat al-Nusra returns weapons that it took from the Free Syrian Army’s Division 13:

A series of protests in Ma’arat al-Nu’man have denounced Jabhat al-Nusra, with the jihadists trying to disrupt some of them.

Division 13 and Jabhat al-Nusra clashed in March with the FSA unit raiding houses and headquarters of the jihadists

Amnesty: YPG-Rebel Fighting Killed 106 Civilians in Aleppo from February to April

Amnesty International has published a report asserting that rebels killed 83 civilians in shelling of a mainly-Kurdish area of Aleppo city between February and April.

Amnesty said that it had obtained the names of the slain civilians, including 30 children, and that a local field hospital claimed more than 700 wounded.

The shelling came amid fighting between the Kurdish militia YPG and rebel factions, amid an offensive by the YPG that took opposition territory in northern Aleppo Province from February. Rebels also accuse the YPG of trying to seize the al-Castello road, one of the main routes into the city, and attacking traffic on it.

Citing the Syrian Network for Human Rights, Amnesty said at least 23 civilians were killed by YPG shelling and sniper attacks in opposition-held areas of Aleppo city.

Quoting a local doctors, Amnesty also repeated claims from Kurdish outlets of several civilians and YPG fighters suffered the effects of a chemical attack.

Rebels have denied the use of any chemical. The Jaish al-Islam faction publicly reprimanded a field commander for firing an “unauthorized”, non-chemical weapon on a civilian area, and said that he would be held to account.

Amid Rebel In-Fighting, Syrian Military Advances in East Ghouta

Taking advantage of rebel in-fighting, the Syrian military has occupied another village in the East Ghouta area near Damascus.

In a video statement, the leading rebel faction Jaish al-Islam acknowledged the loss of Zebdein, blaming the factions Failaq al-Rahman and Jaish al-Fustat for the discord that weakened defenses.

For weeks, Jaish al-Islam has clashed with Failaq al-Rahman and Jaish al-Fustat, which is linked to Jabhat al-Nusra, in fighting which has taken lives on both sides.

A tentative ceasefire was agreed on Monday, follow Jaish al-Islam’s move into two villages held by Failaq al-Rahman.

Leading Jaish al-Islam official Mohammed Alloush called on Thursday for a reconciliation and cooperation to ensure an effective resistance to the pro-Assad offensive, which has taken territory northeast of Damascus since the start of the year.

Central Bank Intervention Checks Currency Slide, But Brings Little Relief

The Governor of the Central Bank, Adib Mayaleh, said on Thursday that the bank intervened for a third straight day to prevent the collapse of the Syrian Pound.

The bank released a third tranche of foreign currency, following a 12% slide in the past week for the critically-weakened Pound.

However, the intervention brought only a small recovery, raising the Pound to 640:1 vs. the US dollar from 645:1 earlier in the week.

The Syrian Pound — 47:1 vs. the dollar at the start of the uprising in March 2011 — stood at 500:1 in March and 570:1 last week.

Earlier this week, the Central Bank abandoned the official fixed rate for the Pound.

Mayaleh said on Thursday that each Syrian exchange company is committed to purchase $1 million while each exchange office must buy $100,000 or face closure.

On Wednesday, the bank held an urgent meeting with representatives of the currency exchange companies and offices.

2 Killed as Assad Regime Blocks 1st Aid to Darayya Since 2012

The local council of besieged Darayya, southwest of Damascus, has said that a father and son were killed and five other people wounded as they waited for an aid convoy which was blocked by the Syrian military.

The five-truck convoy was to be the first delivery of assistance to Darayya since it was blockaded by Assad forces in November 2012. Carrying baby milk and medical and school supplies, it was arranged after very lengthy and difficult negotiations” with the regime, according to the Red Cross.

Now see 2 Killed, 5 Wounded as Assad Regime Blocks 1st Aid to Darayya Since 2012