A view shows damaged buildings in Qaboun neighbourhood of Damascus, in this handout picture provided by SANA on May 16, 2017, Syria.

:: The ISIS group killed more than 50 people in an attack on two government-held villages in central Syria’s Hama province on Thursday, a monitor said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attack on two villages killed 15 civilians and 27 pro-government fighters, with another 10 bodies yet to be identified as government fighters or local residents.

ISIS also lost 15 fighters in the attack, the monitor said.

Thursday’s attack comes as government forces are on the offensive against the extremists in other parts of Syria.

Syria’s state news agency SANA said troops and pro-government gunmen repelled the ISIS attack on villages in Hama province.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said ISIS captured several army positions in the area and killed nine troops. It said troops launched a counteroffensive under the cover of airstrikes.

State TV said two people were wounded in ISIS shelling on the nearby town of Salamiyeh.

The ISIS-linked Aamaq news agency confirmed an attack is ongoing in the area without giving details.