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Syria violence: Blast 'kills Islamist rebel chiefs' Syria crisis: Blast 'kills leader of Ahrar al-Sham' group
(35 minutes later)
A bomb blast has killed several people at a meeting of leaders of key Syrian Islamist insurgent group Ahrar al-Sham. Hassan Abboud, the leader of the Syrian Islamist insurgents Ahrar al-Sham has been killed with other top commanders in a bomb blast at a meeting.
Some reports say the group's leader Hassan Abboud died in the attack, which activists say was carried out by a suicide bomber. Activists say a suicide bomber detonated a vest in the attack in the north-western town of Ram Hamdan.
Ahrar al-Sham is part of the Islamic Front, a coalition of seven Islamist rebel groups.Ahrar al-Sham is part of the Islamic Front, a coalition of seven Islamist rebel groups.
In February, Ahrar al-Sham blamed the rival Islamic State group for an attack which killed several of its members.In February, Ahrar al-Sham blamed the rival Islamic State group for an attack which killed several of its members.
'Worst image'
Ahrar al-Sham is one of the biggest rebel groups fighting the government of President Bashar al-Assad.Ahrar al-Sham is one of the biggest rebel groups fighting the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
Two activist groups said a suicide bomber had detonated a vest at the meeting in the town of Ram Hamdan in Idlib province on Tuesday. Although the group is hard-line Islamist in orientation, it has opposed and clashed with the ultra-radical Islamic State (IS) group, which is the most likely quarter to be blamed for the attack, reports the BBC's Jim Muir.
In an interview with the BBC in June, Abboud had denounced Islamic State (IS), saying it represented "the worst image ever of Islam". IS was blamed when another Ahrar al-Sham leader, Abu Khaled al-Suri, was killed in a suicide bomb attack on his headquarters in Aleppo in February.
The death of Hassan Abboud comes at a moment when the Americans are seeking to unify the Syrian opposition into a coordinated fighting force against IS, although Ahrar al-Sham would have made an unlikely partner in such an American-led campaign, our correspondent says.
In an interview with the BBC in June, Abboud had denounced IS, saying it represented "the worst image ever of Islam".
Abboud said that, unlike IS, Ahrar al-Sham would never pledge loyalty to outsiders and would only fight in Syria.Abboud said that, unlike IS, Ahrar al-Sham would never pledge loyalty to outsiders and would only fight in Syria.
He also stressed that the Islamic Front did not use suicide bombers.He also stressed that the Islamic Front did not use suicide bombers.