ISIL advances in Syria area key for Turkey, US

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters seized five villages from rebel forces in Syria's northern Aleppo province overnight and entered the outskirts of a key opposition bastion there, a monitor said on Aug. 27.
The jihadist group seized three villages near the town of Marea and entered its southern outskirts, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. 

Turkey is pushing for creating a 98 kilometer long and 40 kilometer wide ISIL-free zone on the Syrian side of the border between Marea and Jerablus, with U.S. officials saying that no final agreement was achieved on the issue.

ISIL fighters took another two villages further north in Aleppo province, near the border with Turkey.

Those two villages were previously controlled by Al-Nusra Front, al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, which withdrew from them after Turkey and the United States announced plans on the ISIL-free zone.

Marea is one of the most significant rebel-held towns in northern Aleppo and lies on a key supply route running to the Turkish border.

ISIL has targeted the town for months, seeking to expand westwards from territory it already holds in Aleppo province.

The Observatory said there were reports of dozens of rebel casualties in the fighting, but it had no immediate toll.

It also reported an ISIL car bomb on the southern outskirts of Marea on Thursday morning, but had no details on deaths or injuries.

Activists and medical organizations said this week they had documented an alleged chemical weapons attack, possibly involving mustard gas, on the town on Aug. 21. 

Activists accused ISIL of being behind the attack.

The ISIL-free zone plan has backing from some rebel forces on the ground,...