Syrian warplanes kill at least 12 in southern village

Syrian government warplanes carried out several air raids on a rebel-held village in the country's south today, killing at least 12 people and wounding dozens, activists said.
The airstrikes targeted the village of Jassem in Daraa province, which has been the scene of almost-daily air raids and fighting between government forces and rebels. Rebels have been on the offensive in the area and captured a major military base late last month.
Daraa-based opposition activist Ahmad al-Masalmeh said 14 were killed in the air raids, including four children and two women. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 12 died and 25 were wounded. The disparate casualty tolls could not immediately be reconciled.

The airstrike came as the Observatory said that a pro-government faction known as the National Resistance Movement shot dead a man after accusing him of spying for Israel.
Al-Masalmeh said the dead man was a Syrian army defector from the central province of Hama who was recently wounded in a battle against government forces and later detained as he was returning to his hometown. He added that the execution occurred on Saturday in Daraa province.
Syria's uprising and civil war has killed more than 220,000 people since it began in March 2011, according to the United Nations.