Report: Syrian army storms Banias Sunni districts

Syrian army units stormed into the city of Banias with tanks overnight, attacking Sunni districts that had defied the autocratic rule of President Bashar Assad, a human rights campaigner said on Saturday.

The units entered the coastal city, a majority of whose residents are Sunni Muslims, from three directions, advancing into Sunni districts but not Alawite neighbourhoods, said the campaigner. Most communications with Banias have been cut but the campaigner was able to contact some residents, he said. (Reuters)