Syria olive oil press bombed, leaving 20 dead, 50 injured

GlobalPost

A Syria warplane bombed an olive oil press packed with farmers Tuesday, killing at least 20 and injuring 50.

Activist Tareq Abdelhaq told Reuters at least 20 people were killed and 50 wounded in the attack on the Abu Hilal olive oil press, 2 km (1.2 miles) west of Idlib city. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it could only confirm five deaths.

More from GlobalPost: Inside the Syrian conflict

It was not immediately clear whether the olive press was the intended target, according to the Associated Press.

Reuters said it was unclear if there were rebel targets in the region at the time and that the victims were civilians. Activists did report that there were opposition fighters in the area. They said a jet fired two barrel bombs that hit the press and that rebels have medical care and helped evacuate victims.

The AP also reported that this latest bombing comes as the civil war hits the devastated Syrian population even harder, with Human Rights Watching saying it found "compelling evidence" that the regime used cluster bombs in an airstrike that killed at least 11 children earlier this week.

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