Activists: Syrian army defectors kill 8 soldiers

[November 16, 2011]  BEIRUT (AP) -- A Syrian activist group says army defectors have killed at least eight soldiers and security forces in an attack on an army checkpoint in Hama province.

Attacks on regime forces by renegade troops have been escalating in recent days.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the Hama attack happened in the village of Kfar Zeita on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, Syrian army defectors said they launched several attacks on President Bashar Assad's military and intelligence bases near the capital.

The Free Syrian Army said in a statement the target was a compound run by the Air Force Intelligence in the Damascus suburb of Harasta. It was not clear if there were any casualties in that attack.

[Associated Press; By BASSEM MROUE]

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.