Summary Nearly 500 people have been killed in a week of fighting between Syrian rebels and jihadists.
DAMASCUS (AFP) - Nearly 500 people, among them at least 85 civilians, have been killed in a week of fighting pitting Syrian rebels against jihadists in the north of the strife-torn country.
The fighting raged as Western governments that back the revolt against President Bashar al-Assad prepared to intensify pressure on the opposition to participate in peace talks with the regime planned for later this month.
A new front opened last Friday in Syria s nearly three-year-old war, when powerful massive rebel groups combined to attack bases and checkpoints of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
While the jihadists were initially welcomed by other rebels, allegations of brutal abuses against civilians as well as rival opposition fighters sparked a backlash, and even accusations that they were serving the interests of the regime.
"We have documented the killing of 482 people in the fighting -- 85 civilians, 240 members of the rebel brigades and 157 members of ISIL," said Syrian Observatory for Human Rights director Rami Abdel Rahman.
Among the civilians and rebels killed were 42 hostages who were executed in Aleppo by ISIL.
Rebels also executed 47 ISIL members, mainly in Idlib province in northwestern Syria, Abdel Rahman said, adding that dozens more were believed to have been killed in the fighting.
He called for "crimes being committed in Syria to be brought before an international court."
On Friday, rebels continued to advance in much of Aleppo and Idlib provinces, where ISIL s presence was relatively weak, while the jihadists had the upper hand in Raqa, which has been under their control for several months.
ISIL has its roots in Al-Qaeda in Iraq, and first appeared in the Syrian conflict in spring last year.
Civilians have suffered massively as a result of the latest fighting, activists say.
"In Aleppo city, people are trapped in their houses, unable to fetch medicine or food for fear they will get shot by snipers if they go outside," said anti-regime activist Alaaeddine.
"In Raqa, the situation is even worse," he added.
Despite the "numerical advantage" of Syria s rebels, "ISIL will not be forced out of Syria altogether," according to analyst Charles Lister, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Doha Centre.
"It will maintain operations, but likely in a far more independent manner, and sometimes in opposition to other rebel groups."
ISIL has already carried out several deadly car bombings against rival rebel groups in recent days, particularly in Aleppo and Idlib.
Protesters meanwhile took to the streets Friday, as they have every week since the start of the revolt in March 2011, this time chanting slogans against both Assad and ISIL.
In the northern town of Binnish, protesters chanted: "Syria is free, free! ISIL, get out!" They also held up posters that read: "Bashar al-Assad is our main enemy."
