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DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Activists say at least 23 people have been killed in airstrikes that hit near a school and a hospital east of the Syrian capital. It's one of the deadliest incidents since a cease-fire took effect more than a month ago.
It's not clear who was behind the airstrikes. Syria's government says al-Qaida's branch there operates in the eastern suburbs of Damascus. The militant group, along with the Islamic State, are both excluded from the cease-fire.
The Western-backed Syrian opposition says the government of President Bashar Assad has been targeting civilians despite the truce.
The Syrian National Coalition, an opposition group, denounced what it called a "massacre," saying it threatened to derail the cease-fire and peace talks that are scheduled to resume in Geneva in two weeks.
The talks in Geneva are meant to start a political process for transition in Syria away from Assad.
The Syrian leader has told a Russian news agency that he is ready to hold a snap presidential election if the people call for it. But the proposal was quickly shot down by the opposition, which said sharing power with Assad is absolutely out of the question.
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