Islamic State 'attacking refugee camps' in Syria

Islamic State (IS) has attacked a number of camps set up to house internally displaced Syrians near the border with Turkey, killing at least three people and prompting a new wave of refugees to flee the violence.

"The killings came as the terror group pushed back Syrian opposition forces who had edged to within five miles of Dabiq, a highly symbolic village that the group's leaders believe is the pre-ordained epicentre of a clash that will herald an apocalyptic showdown," says The Guardian.

Sputnik News, the Russian state-backed news agency, says IS has seized five villages from the Free Syrian Army in the northern Aleppo province. "In the midst of the advance, Syrian civilians have been fleeing toward the Oncupinar border post," it says.

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Turkish troops opened fire on civilians fleeing the violence, in an attempt to turn them away at the border, says The Guardian.

"As we approached the border wall, we saw Turkish soldiers on a hill behind the wall and they just started shooting at us," said one refugee.

Humanitarian organisation Human Rights Watch has called on the Turkish government to open its border. "The head of Ikdah camp, on the Turkish border, said that Isis had taken over the camp, which sheltered just under 10,000 people," it says. "People in the camp who couldn't escape quickly enough were digging holes to protect themselves."