Islamist Rebels Seize Syrian Hospital

Islamist rebels continued to make gains in northern Syria Friday, taking over a hospital where government forces had been under siege for weeks. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the al-Qaida affiliated al-Nusra Front had taken "complete control" of the hospital on the outskirts of Jisr al-Shughour. Dozens of government soldiers and others had been holed up inside the hospital since late April. Their fate is unknown, though al-Nusra said via Twitter the soldiers were being pursued. Last month, al-Nusra took control of Jisr al-Shughour, a key town that had been one of the government's last strongholds in Idlib province.

Jisr al-Shughour is seen as strategically important because of its proximity to the Mediterranean coastal areas that form the heartland of President Bashar al-Assad's minority Alawite sect. (VOA)