Car bomb tears through crowded Syrian market

At least seven people have been killed in a car bombing which targeted a busy market in northern Syria.

Several more were injured when the explosion tore through the central market of the town of Azaz in Aleppo province, near the Turkish border.

Footage of the aftermath showed bodies lying on the ground, damaged buildings and the remnants of a car on fire.

It is unclear who carried out the attack in the town which is run by pro-Turkish militias.

No group has claimed responsibility.

When the bomb went off the market was busy with shoppers buying new clothes for their children ahead of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan next month.

The White Helmets, a volunteer rescue group which operates in Syria, said two children were among the dead.

Azaz is controlled by militias fighting Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in the countrys ongoing civil war.

Turkish forces and their proxies control large areas of Syria along the border the two countries share.

Azaz is home to the Syrian Interim Government, an opposition group which stakes a claim to being the countrys legitimate authority.

The town has been described by analysts as strategically important in the context of the civil war because of its proximity to the Turkish border and value as a supply route.

Bombs targeting crowded civilian areas are not uncommon in Syrias north-west border region, including in Azaz.

In 2017, more than 40 people were killed when a car bomb was detonated outside the towns courthouse.

The Islamic State group - which captured the town in 2013 and briefly held it - claimed responsibility for that attack.