ISIL kills 700 prisoners in east Syria

LONDON

Jihadist militants have executed nearly 700 prisoners in two months in eastern Syria, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Dec. 19.

The ISIL group had been holding nearly 1,350 people in territory near the Iraqi border, the U.K.-based organization added.

The jihadists control a shrinking strip of land around the town of Hajin, which U.S.-backed forces entered this month.

Some 5,000 ISIL militants remain holed up in the enclave, according to estimates.