At least eight Syrians were killed Tuesday in shelling that targeted the northwestern coastal city of Banias, whilst rebels managed to foil an attempt by regime forces to storm areas in the south, activists said. "Tanks shelled heavily areas in Banias since the early hours of the morning, killing eight people and wounding 10 others among them children," said the opposition Local Coordination Committees (LCC), which document violence across Syria. Meanwhile, activists in the southern city of Daraa said the opposition Free Syrian Army held off an assault on the town of Daal and forced regime forces to retreat from the area. More than 12,000 people, the majority of them civilians, have died since the uprising began in March 2011, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, including more than 900 killed since a UN-brokered April 12 ceasefire went into effect.
