![Rebel fighters man a checkpoint close to Jabal al-Zawiyaa in Idlib province on January 6, 2014. [AFP]](/sites/default/files/styles/d08_standard/public/im/misc/000_Nic6282278.jpg?itok=AWcsya-j "Rebel fighters man a checkpoint close to Jabal al-Zawiyaa in Idlib province on January 6, 2014. [AFP]")
A bomb attack blamed on pro-al-Qaeda group, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), has killed at least five militants in Syria’s Idlib Province as infighting rages on among various foreign-backed opposition groups.
The so-called Observatory for Human Rights, which is based in the UK, said the incident took place on Saturday in Saraqeb, adding that ISIL was behind the attack.
The observatory further stated that the bomb was planted under a vehicle used by militants from Ahrar al-Sham brigade that has led the battle against ISIL militants in the area.
The attack came as the Ahrar al-Sham militants were preparing for an assault on an ISIL base in Idlib.
In the city of Raqqa, the ISIL militants surrounded the home of a commander from another al-Qaeda-linked group, the al-Nusra Front.
The ISIL had earlier engaged in clashes with the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) in the city.
Infighting among different foreign-sponsored militant groups fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad has spread across northern Syria over the past week.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies -- especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey -- are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.
