Syrian air strikes kills 19

Rocket strike kills at least 19 people and possibly more in a Syrian rebel occupied neighborhood of Aleppo early Tuesday morning.

According to The New York Times, the local activists reported the attack.

Two mortar rounds had exploded near President Bashar al-Assad’s Presidential Palace located in Damascus. Currently the complex is surrounded by the insurgency. There is also about 25 people missing underneath building debris.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British anti-Assad group has been the leading organization in documenting and aiding the Syrian rebels.

“Bodies were being gradually dug up. Some, including children, have died in hospitals," Mohammad Nour, an activist, said Reuters by phone.

The Syrian conflict began as a political protest during the Arab Spring Middle East international revolution in 2011. However, it has escalated into a full fledged civil war with multiple fractions and sects. The United Nations has reported about 70,000 people have been killed.

The conflict is primarily between Sunni Muslims and supporters of Assad.