Death toll in Syria arms depot blast rises to 69: monitor

Syrian rescue workers known as White Helmets sift through the rubble of destroyed buildings on August 12, 2018 following an explosion at an arms depot in a residential area in Syria's northern Idlib province city of Sarmada in which 69 people were reportedly killed. (AFP)

• Sunday’s blast in the town of Sarmada killed 52 civilians and 17 members of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham
• The explosion remains of unknown origin

BEIRUT: The death toll of an explosion of unknown origin at a weapons depot in Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib has risen to 69, mostly civilians, a monitor said Monday.
Sunday’s blast in the town of Sarmada killed 52 civilians and 17 members of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, an extremist-led alliance, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.