Syrian government forces attack rebel areas on Damascus outskirts - Syrian Observatory

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian government forces attacked rebel-held areas on the northeastern outskirts of Damascus with rockets and shellfire on Saturday and killed at least nine people, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said. A Reuters witness heard the sounds of heavy bombardment coming from the area. The British-based Observatory said the government forces' assault was around the Qaboun and Barzeh districts. (Reporting by John Davison; Additional reporting by Kinda Makieh in Damascus; Editing by Adrian Croft)