Syrian forces, rebels step up battle in north

DAMASCUS, Syria -- Syrian troops stepped up an offensive against rebels in the north yesterday, following explosions targeting security forces and a university campus that killed more than 100 people in two days.

Powerful suicide car bombs that killed about two dozen people in Idlib marked another escalation in the fight for control of northern Syria. The day before, massive blasts heavily damaged the main university in the commercial hub of Aleppo, killing 87 people and wounding scores.

The nearly simultaneous bombings Wednesday in Idlib bore the trademarks of Islamic militants, the most organized rebel fighters trying to topple President Bashar Assad's government. More than 60,000 people have been killed in the 22-month conflict, according to the United Nations.

Assad's warplanes struck rebel targets in both northern cities, still reeling from the deadly explosions.

The Syrian army vowed to crush the armed opposition to "cleanse the homeland of their dirt." An army statement said its troops killed and wounded dozens of "terrorist mercenaries" in Aleppo following the attacks on the university. -- AP