Syrian al-Qaeda attacks besieged Shi'ite villages
BEIRUT - Syria's al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front and other Sunni Muslim militants fought during the night to capture two Shi'ite villages in the country's north but were repelled, activists on both sides of the war and a monitoring group said Friday.
The insurgents were briefly able to control streets in the southern part of Zahra and buildings in the nearby village of Nubl, north of Aleppo city, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The militants, who used tanks, were pushed back from both areas by the National Defense Force, a grouping of loyalist militias under the umbrella of the army, it said.
