Syrian troops enter key rebel-held town amid bombardment

DAMASCUS - Syrian government forces Tuesday entered a key rebel-held town in the country's northwest after surrounding it on three sides, sending thousands of people fleeing to safety in areas farther north, opposition activists and pro-government media said. Maaret al-Numan is a town of symbolic and strategic importance in the country's last major opposition bastion, the northwestern province of Idlib. The pro-government Sham FM reported that troops had taken control of most of Maaret al-Numan, adding that Syrian soldiers were conducting search operations as experts began to dismantle explosives and booby-traps left behind by militants. Earlier in...